Wicked Things
by Raven Lenore Robins
Summary: Wren and Cato are polar opposites. Completely different they may be, they still have one definite thing in common; a particular knack for getting into a lot of trouble with the wrong people. Third installment of the 'Lenore' series! Read&Review please.
1. Siblings

Cato sat at the small table in the back corner at Taco Bell, scribbling notes from his math textbook. He made an error, cursed, and then corrected it. He hated having to erase his work; it wasted time and got eraser shavings all over the place.

'I'm working too much…' he thought to himself, and set his pencil down on the neat paper. He leaned back and stretched before raking back some of his rust-red, shoulder length hair. Even after he did so, his bangs just fell back into place, hiding his right eye from view. He really didn't mind that, and preferred to keep one of his eyes covered at all times. One of them was an iced blue, and the other bright green. Whenever he showed both eyes, people always gawked at their different colors. It was supremely agitating. _Nothing_ could be more agitating for him.

Except, of course, for one particular individual…

"Yo, little bro! Our stuff's ready!" said a girl's cheery voice. Wren Bleak. His older sister by forty-six seconds.

Cato looked from his notes to Wren. She was practically bouncing to their table with the tray of food. There wasn't really anything for him on it; he hated fast food places, and would rather starve than eat the greasy so-called food that they served. When she rested the tray on the table, and on his notes for that matter, she jumped into the seat opposite him and began to dig in.

"Try not to get anything on your uniform this time, Wren. Last time Alfred had a _fit_-"

"Oh, you worry too much, bro. But yeah, I should probably use a napkin for this…" she said, and grinned at her plate of nachos with extra cheese. The last time she had these, she dropped a nacho and got cheese all over her Academy jacket. Alfred lectured her for hours on proper table manners and dress wear. The old butler was always scolding her for something, which made Cato and she all the more different. Alfred never had to scold Cato.

Wren yanked Cato's notes from under the tray and examined them closely while shoving a nacho in her mouth. Cato prayed to every religions god(s) that she wouldn't get food on the paper…

"You know…there's a reason why they call this stuff _home_work…" she said, putting much emphasis on the 'home' part of homework. She continued staring at the math, her green eyes scanning the complicated formulas. Finally she shrugged and set them down on his textbook before taking another nacho.

"That wasn't homework; my math teacher is completely incompetent and won't let me go on ahead while the other students are slugging behind. I don't care. I'm going on to the next chapters anyway. With the rate I'm going, I'll be done with this infernal class within the next few weeks."

"But you still gotta take tests and stuff, Cato." Wren said, her cheeks full of food. At least she was polite enough to cover her mouth when she spoke.

"Simple things. They're really nothing. And here I thought that Gotham Academy was a top school…"

"Hey, don't rag on the school just 'cause you're an evil genius." Wren said. Cato raised a brow.

"_Evil genius_?"

"Yeah, like Grampa Scary. You're always hanging around him. I think his creepy nature is rubbing off on you…yeah, you've definitely been a lot creepier lately." She said, squinting her eyes as if she were thinking really hard.

"I'm not creepy…" Cato muttered, and pulled his math book to him again.

"Whatever. At least you're not as shy as you used to be. I remember when you used to hide behind me like crazy from everything, and I'm the short one, haha." Wren said. Cato blushed a little at the memory of being afraid to go near anything without Wren when he was younger. Only around now was he beginning to come out of his hypothetical shell. He was turning thirteen tomorrow, and he'd be damned if he still wanted to hide behind his sister, who was about a head shorter than him.

"Please don't bring that up…" he said, and flipped a page in agitation.

"Yeah, yeah, fine. I think it was cute, though. You were always pointing at stuff and looking at me to tell you what they were when we were, like, two. Man, I loved being that age. I got away with _everything_."

"That has nothing to do with the subject."

"You told me to drop it, so I started a _new_ subject…" Wren said, and smirked at his annoyed expression.

"Anyway, are you nearly finished? We need to be home by four…" Cato checked his watch. It was three fifteen.

"Yup, done. Let's go." Wren hopped up from her seat and took the tray to the trash bin while Cato put his books in his backpack. Once outside, they started for home. Wayne Manor; the happiest place on earth. Wheeeeee….

"Remind me why we have to be home at four…" Wren said. Cato sighed and shifted his backpack on his shoulders.

"Because, you were late for your last curfew, and now you're on house arrest starting at four every day for two weeks. That's why."

"But why do you have to go home with me?"

"I don't have to, I just have too much work to do. I have no time for goofing off." Wren gawked at him.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say we were from completely different families." She said. She loved goofing off, especially with her powers. Every few days she was caught blowing up a fire hydrant or sending eggs flying at people's heads from far away at the mall. She thought it was a laugh riot. He thought it was ridiculous. His powers weren't exactly much, but they worked out for him. He didn't use them for what Wren normally did. Instead he would multitask. Folding laundry while doing homework was a plus for him. Wren thought it was 'ick'.

He wasn't really paying attention. He never does when he starts to think. So, he barely noticed the fact that Wren was no longer next to him. He blinked and looked around, expecting to find her window shopping. He still didn't see her.

Slight panic began to build in him as his search became a little more frantic. He hated to admit it, but he still felt uneasy when she wasn't with him, like a helpless little kid who lost his mother. He was afraid.

Only when he saw her running out of a small candy shop did he begin to feel relief.

But that relief quickly turned to dread.

Wren was running _really_ fast, towards him, with yellow boxes of candy gripped in her hands. A look of mischief was painted on her face and an old man who Cato believed to be the clerk came out of the shop and yelled something in Spanish at them both. Wonderful. When she got up to him, he was angry.

"You didn't just steal _candy_, did y-"

"No time! Let's _go_!" Wren threw some candy into his arms and bolted down the street. Cato dropped the sweets and followed her.

"I can't believe this…" he muttered to himself as they both turned a corner. He looked back and saw a police officer going after them. "What the hell?" When did he get here? Did the clerk have his own security guard or something? Cato wouldn't put it past him to do so, especially since kids like Wren existed…

"I got it!" Wren said from next to him. She turned around and ran backward, then waved her hand at some crates of magazines at a news stand. They tumbled down in front of the officer and blocked his path, giving them a few seconds to lose him. Wren returned to facing forward while she ran, but not before giving a hearty laugh at the wreckage she created.

When they rounded the corner, they went for the alleyways. This wasn't their first time running from an authority figure. Wren had done many things on occasion, usually ending with somehow both of them being chased. Wren loved the rush. Cato loved it too, but hated the consequences when they were caught.

After a few more minutes of running, the twins slowed down to a trot, then finally began to walk when they knew they were safe.

"That was fun." Wren said, looking at her candy prizes. She frowned. "I don't like caramel." She said, and tossed the candy away without a thought. Cato eyed her.

"Could you please make a more worthwhile selection next time you do this?" he asked, cracking a small smile. "I mean, on the run because of Milk Duds…really…"

"We're kids, whaddya expect, bro?" she said, and skipped forward before performing a few cartwheels. Cato looked quickly away from her.

"Wren, you're in your uniform. Your skirt…" he said. Wren stopped the cartwheeling and righted herself.

"Always so proper, Cato, but okay, since my butt _horrifies_ you so much." She said cheerily, and went back to walking with him. Cato sighed at her lasciviousness, and glared at her.

She definitely took after their father. Her wispy black hair reached just past her shoulders, and was always in low pigtails. Her nails were painted black, despite the nagging of her teachers, and she was always goofing off and having too much fun for her own good. Just like their father. She even became angry like their father, her eyes tinting red whenever she caught someone messing with her brother or anyone else se cared about. You knew you crossed a line when Wren Bleak became serious…

Wren was tall, but not as tall as Cato, which he didn't mind. What he _did_ mind was the fact that she filled out in places that most other girls weren't at their age. If it wasn't her bright personality that made her popular at school, it was the size of her breasts and backside. Guys were always hounding after her, and Cato hated it. It was the over-protective brotherly part of him that made him feel that he needed to gas every boy their age with fear toxin.

Cato himself took mostly from his mother. His shoulder length, choppy hair was the same color as his grandfathers, and he definitely had the same limb structure as his mother. Long. His mother wasn't serious like Cato was, but his grandfather was, and he preferred to visit Doctor Crane whenever possible. Crane's extensive knowledge, as well as his affinity for fear, fascinated Cato. It was even through Crane's own work that Cato was able to face the things he was afraid of as a child, and he was thankful for that. His grandfather was like a hero to him at most times.

"Well, I don't know…" Wren's words brought Cato back to reality, and he looked to her questioningly. She was looking at a small white mouse that was sitting on her shoulder, its pink nose twitching about. He was her familiar, Bach. Apparently he was scolding her for her actions, Cato didn't know. His own familiar, Archimedes, was at home. It was rather difficult to hide a king cobra in your pocket, you see. Bach was laid back most of the time, and often even helped Wren steal things, so long as they were small enough to carry. Archimedes was, as Cato could best put it, Teekl with scales. Like the orange longhaired cat, the cobra always held a proper and dignified manner. And she was vegetarian. Since her colleague was a mouse, it was very convenient that her favorite dish was fruit salad.

"We should get home quickly. It's three forty-seven." Cato said after checking his watch. They weren't far now, but he wanted to hurry. Maybe getting Wren home early would help shorten her punishment. What could he say, he loved his sister, even if she was incredibly annoying.

"Yeah, Bach is saying the same thing. Maybe if we get home soon, Uncle Bruce will take a few days off my punishment." She said. Cato rolled his eyes.

"Alright, let's take this next right."

"I know the shortcut, bro, you don't gotta remind me." Wren said, and grinned at her brother. Cato shook his head and kept walking. Wren took his hand, and he looked down.

"What are you doing?" he asked, and tried to pull his hand away. Wren's grip only tightened.

"After all those years of you asking to hold my hand, you gotta let me hold yours when I want to, so there." She stuck her tongue out at him, and he sighed.

When they turned the corner, they bumped into something and looked up.

It was the police officer, and he looked supremely pissed off.

"You kids are coming with me." He said gruffly, and grabbed their jackets. Cato saw Wren smile mischievously, and her gripped her hand. She looked at him in question, and he mouthed 'no'. Wren huffed, but didn't use her powers. Cato looked back up to the police officer, who didn't know that he was just saved the pain of some sore limbs.

"Yes, officer. Lead the way." He said as politely as he could. The officer grunted and hauled them to his car. The whole ride home, the twins kept their hands laced in the others, not even realizing it.

….

Bruce heard a rough knock at the door, and went to open it.

The first thing he saw was the police officer, then he slowly looked down to see Wren and Cato's surly faces.

"We've been unjustly framed by two kids that look exactly like us!" Wren cried out. Cato said nothing, and walked inside. Wren stuck her tongue out at the officer before following her brother.

When the officer finally left, Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose and closed the door a little harder than necessary. The twins sat at the couches in the living room, silent. He walked over to them and fixed them with a stern look.

"_Candy bars_…" he said.

"Correction; _Milk Duds_." Wren said. Bruce glared at her.

"It was candy. And you stole it. That's all that matters." He said.

"If it helps my case, I didn't eat the candy. I _hate_ Milk Duds." Wren said. Cato imagined their graves, and they were steadily becoming deeper….

Bruce's eyes widened. "Then _why_ did you take it?" he asked. Wren shrugged.

"Wasn't paying attention. Don't worry, net time I will-"

"There won't _be_ a next time!" Bruce yelled. Cato sighed. Wren gave a sheepish smile.

"Oh, yeah. That's what I meant." She said, and laughed nervously at Bruce's reddening face. "Uh, you should probably count to ten, Uncle Bruce." She suggested.

"I'm at thirty-two…" Bruce replied darkly. Wren gulped. "Your punishment has just been lengthened by a month, Wren, and I expect you home as soon as school ends. Absolutely _no_ detours." He said. Wren looked like she was about to protest, but Cato shot her a look that said, 'Don't do it, dammit! You'll kill us all!' so instead she folded her arms across her chest and frowned.

"Fine…"

"As for you, Cato." Bruce turned to him. "You're grounded as well. Same punishment, understand?" Cato simply nodded.

"Of course." He said. He wasn't disturbed that he couldn't go anywhere for a month. It wasn't like he had a life anyway.

"I'll be telling your mother about this tonight when I call her, so expect a scolding when you visit her tomorrow." Bruce said. Cato hid his smile, but Wren beamed.

"Oh, yeah! We're going to Arkham tomorrow!" She said brightly, and punched the air with her fist. "Can't wait!"

"We were there just last Thursday, calm down." Cato said quietly. He couldn't help but remain quiet around Bruce. There was something about him that made Cato feel just a bit uneasy at times… Then again, there was plenty that made the boy feel uneasy, so he just dropped it.

"Yeah, so? I love it there!" Wren said, and gave off a smile that was a bit unsettling.

'Maybe she can live there one day. The way she acts, it's incredibly possible…' Cato thought, and imagined Wren in a strait jacket. It fit.

"Back to the subject." Bruce said, and brought back their attention. "What you two did was incredibly wrong. You could get into serious trouble with the law. You're teenagers. They can send you to a detention center-"

"And we would rule that place like _kings_." Wren said dreamily. Cato snorted. Wow.

"I'm being serious, Wren."

"I know, Uncle Bruce. Sorry…" Wren said, and put on an apologetic face that most people fell for. All except Bruce.

"I know you'll be sorry after you clean the kitchen on Sunday…" he said. Wren shrugged.

"I can do that." She said. Bruce smirked.

"_No_ powers." He said. Wren's eyes widened and she groaned loudly.

"You're _killin'_ me, Uncle Bruce."

"That's what you get for giving me a migraine." Bruce said. "Now, both of you, go to your rooms until you're called down for dinner."

Wren leapt from her spot and walked up the stairs, a bit sad. Cato went over to Bruce.

"I'm sorry about what happened today, sir. I'll try not to let it happen again." He said so quietly that Bruce almost didn't hear him. Bruce smiled at him.

"That's what you said last time." He said, and patted Cato's shoulder before leaving to his study. Cato sighed and went to his room, where Archimedes waited for him.

"I have a feeling that's all I'll ever be able to say…" he said, and smiled before closed his room door behind him. He didn't really care about getting into trouble. He wouldn't admit that he also found it to be invigorating.

It was just part of his genetics, he guessed.

…

**Author's Note: Ooooookay! Third installment, hot off the ol' noggin', haha. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Definitely more to come! :D**


	2. Birthday Fiasco

One thing that made Cato different from his sister, besides everything else about them, was the way the two dressed. The dark clothing with an almost emo/rocker style…

Were Cato's style of dress. Yes, oddly enough, it was what he preferred, and he hated how people told him that the way he acted made him seem like he would be into a more proper style of clothing. It wasn't his fault he enjoyed wearing comfortable clothes while he worked.

_Wren_ liked the proper styled clothing. From pleated school-girl skirts to white button-up tops, Wren wore it all. She loved how cute the clothes were and how cute they made her look, not that she needed much help in the cute department. She wore her Academy uniform happily, and sometimes even wore it on weekends, just because. Cato couldn't understand this; he found his uniform to be uncomfortable and restricting. In the end, he merely ruled his sister out as insane.

Cato walked out of his room in a black shirt, grey cargo pants, and black sandals. Around his neck was his mother's black chain with its cracked red sphere held in place by claw-shaped prongs. It was a birthday gift for him when he was younger, and he was always wearing it. A simple silver ring with a small skull was worn on his index finger.

"I'll be back." He said to Archimedes. She looked at him from her plate of fruit salad on his desk and nodded. Cato smiled at her before closing the door and heading downstairs. It was safe for him to be away from his familiar for an extensive amount of time, since his powers weren't exactly, well, powerful. Wren always had her familiar, Bach, with her, no matter how powerful or weak she was. The two were inseparable.

When he made it downstairs, Bruce and Wren were talking in the living room. Wren was in a black pleated skirt that reached mid-thigh, a white, long-sleeved button-up shirt with a grey vest over it, and black shoes that had a strap go over the top of them. White socks reached up just past her knees, and red and black ribbons tied her hair into low pigtails. She looked over to him and smiled wide.

"_Finally_, sleepy-head! I was waiting for, like, _ever_!" she said, and ran up and grabbed his arm, tugging him toward the door.

"Fine, fine.." Cato murmured, and allowed himself to be dragged to the limo.

"Oh yeah," Wren said as they got in. "Happy thirteenth Birthday, bro."

…

"Hah-lee, _preese_, stob id…" Cato muttered as Harley pinched and pulled at his cheeks. Wren giggled at him from next to their mother, Lenore, who was suppressing a laugh. He blushed; he hated his mother seeing him like this. When Harley finally let go he rubbed his pained face and walked over to Lenore. "Why does she have to do that?" he asked quietly. Lenore shrugged.

"She's your godmother, what do you expect?" she said, and smiled at him. Cato took in her image. Like his sister and his father, Lenore had a pale complexion. Only he was with normal toned skin, though still a bit pale to society's standards. Lenore's dark red hair reached her mid-thigh when it was down, and her steely green eyes always seemed to be thinking through a situation. Her overprotective and aggressive nature made her who she was, and though sometimes her attitude was over the top, Cato wouldn't want her any other way. He knew it was cliché to think this, but he believed he had the greatest mother in the world.

"Now," Lenore said, motioning for the two to sit down next to her. "I heard from Bruce that you two got into trouble yesterday. Over stolen candy…" she finished her words with a hint of amusement in her voice. Wren grinned.

"Yeah, I grabbed some candy and ran, big whoop." She said. "It wasn't even candy I liked, so whatever." Lenore rolled her eyes.

"What have I told you about stealing?" she asked. Wren looked up at the ceiling and touched her finger to her chin in thought.

"Uuuhh…"

"Never get caught…" Cato said quietly, and looked over to his grandfather, who was arguing with Riddler about something. He wanted to join the conversation.

"Yeah, that's what I was going to say." Wren said. Lenore patted her black hair.

"Of course, dear." She said, and gave such a lovely smile that Cato's jaw dropped a little.

'_Why_ does my mother have to be pretty…' he thought to himself. He knew that 'pretty' was an understatement, but that was all he wanted to say. At the Academy, if the boys weren't talking about his sister, they were talking about his mother. He wished sorely that she never went through with going to the 'parent/teacher night' a few months ago after escaping Arkham. Ever since then, she was the fantasy of his classmates, and he wanted to kill them all. He couldn't even argue with them. Even though his mother was nearly thirty, she looked like an eighteen-year-old. She said that she was able to adjust her age to how old she wanted to be any time, the same as their father…

"I promise not to get caught next time." Wren said. Lenore nodded.

"Good. Remember, Wren, when you get caught doing something like this, you get your brother in trouble, too. That isn't hardly fair, is it? He should be able to get in trouble all on his own, so I don't think he needs your help." She said.

"But if I didn't get him into trouble, he wouldn't know what fun is. All he does is work…"

"That's not true. I'm here now, right? And with no work…" he muttered.

"And we're real proud, bro, haha." Wren teased.

"At least I keep my clothes clean when I eat." He snapped back.

"Hey, quit it you two." Lenore warned, and they stopped their bickering. She reached into her sleeve and extracted two small boxes. She handed one to each of them, and they took them. "Happy Birthday, kiddos."

Wren ripped open her box and squealed. A set of pearl earrings and a pearl bracelet rested inside of it.

"Omigosh, I always wanted pearls! Thanks mom, so much!" Wren hugged Lenore tightly and then took out her own earrings to put in the pearl ones.

Cato opened his own box, hoping that pearls weren't awaiting him. Instead he found a pencil sharpener. It was silver, with a cobra etched into it. He took it out and stared. Lenore smiled.

"You were always complaining about never having a pencil sharpener handy, so I made this." She said. He looked up at his mother, and she went on. "And to make sure you never lose it, I placed a small searching spell on it, so if you ever need to find it, just whistle and it'll appear in your pocket."

Cato wanted to hug his mother after that; she knew him so well, and knew just what he wanted. He smiled shyly.

"Thanks, mother. I love this." He said, and stuck the sharpener in his pocket.

"Hey, what do my pearls do, huh, mom?" Wren asked.

"Well, if you put them on, they change different hues to match your outfit." Lenore said to her, and she squealed in delight again.

As time went by, Lenore and Wren began speaking about subjects that Cato found to be quite boring, so he excused himself and walked over to his grandfather, who was looking rather agitated.

"Did you come to a disagreement with Riddler, Jonathan?" he asked. Jonathan looked up from the book he was only staring at and frowned.

"More like Riddler can't accept the fact that I am correct and he is incorrect." He said. Cato smiled and sat down next to Jonathan's chair.

"How have your escape plans been going?" he asked. Jonathan smirked.

"They would be doing just fine, if you would give me that paper clip you promised." He said. Cato reached into his pocket and extracted some paper clips, then handed them to Jonathan. He didn't know what they were needed for, but it wasn't his place to ask.

"I brought extra. No such thing as being too careful…" he said quietly. Jonathan quickly tucked them away and patted Cato's head.

"There's a good child."

"I don't know why you don't just ask mother to transport you guys out of here when you want out." Cato said, and leaned against the arm of the chair.

"It would make us dependent, and would dull our abilities to escape on our own." Jonathan said as-a-matter-of-factly.

"I see." Cato plucked at the carpet for a few long seconds.

"It's really odd, you know. Your mother did the same exact thing whenever she visited me as a child. Even sat in the same spot there. If it weren't for that blue eye, you'd look exactly like her." Jonathan suddenly said. Cato blinked.

"Huh…" so his mother sat where he sat now when she was younger, before he was around. He wondered what she and Jonathan talked about…

"I would always be checking her schoolwork, even when she insisted that the questions were correct. She was right, of course, but like you said, one can never be too careful…"

"She really looked like I do now?" Cato asked. Jonathan nodded, then scanned the bookshelf for something. "What are you looking for?"

"The old album she gave to me…I'll allow you to borrow it for a while." Jonathan said, then picked out a small black book from the third shelf. He handed it to Cato. "There, happy birthday and what-have-you." Jonathan said. Cato nodded and set the book down next to him. He would definitely look at it later.

"Grampa Scaaaaaaaary!" Wren's bright voice called. Cato looked up and saw her bounding over to them. When she reached them, she hopped onto Jonathan's lap and grinned. "Say happy birthday to me, old timer!"

"…" Cato smacked his hand to his forehead. How could she be this idiotic…

"Happy birthday, Wren." Jonathan said. Cato could sense the hint of annoyance in his tone. Jonathan didn't get along well with Wren, but he still cared for her, and dealt with her attitude politely. Cato was grateful for that, as he understood how hard it could be for someone like Jonathan to tolerate a girl like Wren.

"Daddy says you tried to gas him last time you saw each other, is that true?" she asked. Jonathan's eyes hooded.

"Yes…"

"Why?"

"He was being annoying."

"How?"

"Like you are being currently."

"When?"

"Some weeks ago."

"Where?"

"In the Narrows."

"_What_?" Wren looked to Cato in question. He was also confused.

"Why was father in the Narrows?" he asked. Jonathan shrugged.

"It was no concern of mine. We simply ran into each other and he annoyed me, so I gassed him. Simplest way to get rid of your pest of a father-"

"Nice, old man. _Real_ nice…." Lenore walked up to him, a slightly stern look on her pale face. Ivey walked with her, also looking a bit serious.

"What?" Jonathan asked, feigning innocence.

"Oh, you know what. Don't talk bad about my husband in front of our kids; they'll get false impressions." She said.

"Don't worry mother, my impression on father is pretty well fixed." Cato said. He cared about his father, but it was basically the same situation between him and Klarion as it was for Jonathan and Wren.

"And what is that supposed to mean, young man?" Lenore asked. She placed her hands on her hips and tapped her foot. Uh-oh. 'The foot-tap of impending doom', as Wren would eerily put it. Cato thought fast.

"I just mean that other people's words about father won't sway what it is that I already think about him." he said. Technically he wasn't lying, but he wasn't really answering her question either. Lenore raised a brow at him like, 'I saw through that, but I'll let it slide…'

"Alright, whatever, but hey, Dr. Leland says it's time to go, so hop to it." She said. Cato slowly got up from his spot with the album in hand and turned to Jonathan. Wren's arms were wrapped around his neck and she put on a pouty face.

"But Grampa Scary wants me to stay…" she said. Jonathan gave a look saying that he most definitely wanted the exact opposite of what she said.

"Oh, I'm sorry, babe, but you gotta go." Lenore said, then gave a wicked smile. "But maybe you should give grampa a kiss on the cheek to make him feel better." She suggested, and walked away with Ivey. Wren smiled and did just as Lenore recommended. Cato looked away; he didn't want to see that.

"As always, your mother is giving helpful advice…" Jonathan said to Cato when Wren skipped away to say bye to everyone else.

"Yeah, sorry about that." Cato said.

"Trust me; your mother has put me through _much_, much worse." Jonathan said darkly.

"I can understand that." Cato said, and smiled at Lenore as she pried Wren and Harley apart. "Well, I should be going, Jonathan." He said finally.

"Yes, best be off, else the insanity will get to you." Jonathan said, and reopened his book. The conversation was over. Cato nodded and made his way towards Lenore, but was stopped by Hatter.

"Your hair wants cutting…." Hatter said in a dreamy way. Cato looked at Hatter's yellow hair and frowned.

"Your hair is nearly as long as mine." He said. Hatter grinned.

"_Nearly_ and _equal to_ are not phrases that dwell within the same card deck, you see. You might as well say my hair nearly wants cutting. Now that hardly makes any sort of sense, does it?" he asked.

"Yes, well, it was a pleasure speaking with you, Mr. Tetch." Cato said quickly, and walked away. He didn't much enjoy speaking with that guy; they could never have a decent conversation.

After saying their goodbyes to everyone, Wren and Cato hugged Lenore and left, both feeling a bit empty as the door to the lounge closed behind them.

"Now, now, dears. No need to be sad. You'll be visiting again in no time." Dr. Leland assured them as she led them to the entrance where Bruce was waiting.

"I don't want to visit anymore…" Wren said sadly. "I want mom to come stay with us…"

Cato looked at Wren. She was on the verge of tears, as she always was after visits. He took her hand and squeezed it lightly. She looked back at him and smiled.

"It'll be okay." He told her. Usually at these times he was proud to say he was able to look after her, like she did for him the rest of the time.

"I know…" she said back. He was happy that he was able to keep her from crying this time.

Then it all went to hell.

Someone in an orange jumpsuit crashed into the twins, sending Wren to the floor. Bach, who was hiding in her vest pocket, shot out of it to see what was going on. Dr. Leland gasped as the inmate grabbed Cato and began to shake him.

"Make them stop! I learned my lesson! Make them stop, please! I k-know you can do it! They keep sc-sc-scrrrrreaming!" he rasped. Cato's eyes were wide with shock and fear. He didn't know what to do. All he _could_ do was stare at the crazed man's image. Greasy dark hair fell over his wide, sunken eyes, and spittle ran from his mouth as he continued to screech. Cato looked down at the man's shirt and read the name; Thorne.

'Oh, hell…' he knew who this guy was, and why he was here. Lenore had shattered his mind with toxin after he allegedly killed most of her friends in a fire at the orphanage she once lived in. Now he believed that the ghosts of the children were always with him. Ben Thorne, grandson to Gotham's most dangerous crime boss, taken down effortlessly by Cato's own mother. This was what she could do to a man, without even using powers. Lenore Crane was a dangerous child.

Cato felt Thorne's hands rip away from him as two orderlies wrestled him to the ground. He screeched louder, spitting and biting at everything. After he was in cuffs he was hauled away, back to where he came from.

Cato was numb. He stared off into space, completely shocked. Wren ran into his view and touched his face, a worried expression on her own. He could barely hear her for a few moments, but soon her voice became more clear, less distant.

"-to. Cato! You okay? Did that creep hurt you? Huh? Snap out of it!" she bopped his cheek with the flat of her palm and he blinked. He looked down at her.

"I-I'm fine, just…I'm fine, okay?" he said. Wren didn't look at all convinced, but she decided to leave it be for now. Dr. Leland was making a fuss around them, checking them to make sure they had no scrapes or anything. When she found nothing, she hurried them to the entrance.

Bruce was confused when they walked up to him, Cato could tell. After Dr. Leland explained everything, Bruce's expression was darker than usual. Wren tugged on his suit sleeve before he could talk.

"Can we go home now? I want to go home." She said. Bruce slowly nodded and they left the Asylum. Everyone was silent as they entered the limo, and didn't speak the entire way home.

Cato kept the album clutched closely to his chest as he entered the house, and went straight to his room.

'_What's wrong?'_ Archimedes asked when he closed the door behind him. The four foot long cobra rested on the sill, basking. Cato didn't answer her. He just walked over to his bed and slumped down onto it, tossing the album to the side as he did so.

Archimedes made her way over to the bed and rested on Cato's stomach_. 'What's wrong, child? Tell me…' _she insisted.

"Just a sucky day, is all…" he replied.

'_That is no way to describe your birthday, little Cato…'_

"But it's the only way…One of the inmates attacked me today. The one guy, Thorne, the guy that mother messed up when she was my age. He grabbed me.." Cato lifted his shirt sleeve to reveal dark spots forming on his shoulder where Thorne gripped him. Archimedes tensed, and she hissed.

'_I'll kill him…'_ she whispered. Cato smirked.

"Nah, it's fine."

'_It would be simple, Cato. It's no trouble-'_

"_No_, thank you, Archimedes. I'll be fine in a few days." He said.

'_At any rate, have confidence boy, and don't allow scum like that to bring down your already surly mood…'_

"Are you saying I'm surly?" he asked. She nodded and left his stomach. He watched her go over to the album and flip it open with the end of her slender tail.

'_Who is this?'_ she asked pointing to a small photo. Cato sighed and rolled himself over to where she was. He looked to where she pointed and raised a brow. It was a tall girl, around his age, with short, messily cut, rust-red hair. Her green eyes looked brightly up at him as she hugged a little girl next to her.

"I think it's mother, when she was in the orphanage." He said, and turned the page. Yes, it was definitely his mother, since the next photo was of her with Harley and Ivey. He smiled back at them and flipped the page again. He found one picture of Killer Croc and her, and he whistled. Mom had guts. But he already knew that.

His mother was _dangerous_.

…**..**

**Author's Note: lol, do you know how many times I caught myself writing Lenore's name instead of Cato's in these chapters? A lot! XD Hope you enjoyed the chapter, and thanks much for the reviews! Stay tuned! :D**


	3. Hobbies

"Hey little brother-"

"Must you always refer to me as 'little brother'? We're the same age-"

"Forty-six seconds disagrees with you."

"_Ugh_.." Cato and Wren seated themselves at one of the outside benches for lunch. Wren had a tray of school food, while Cato had prepared his own meal at home; a simple salad and water.

"Y'know, sometimes you're such a chick." Wren said as they ate. Cato was barely paying attention.

"Mm?" he mumbled, and flipped a page of his chemistry book.

"What guy our age eats _salad_? There must be something wrong with you…" she said with a mouthful of hamburger. Cato looked at his sister.

"I apologize for the fact that I would rather not _die_ due to blood clots that occurred through the consumption of eating the mystery meat used to create that so-called _hamburger_." He said. Wren appeared to consider this for a moment as she chewed.

"Death by hamburger…." She muttered finally, and looked at her burger. She smiled. "That would be awesome." Cato snorted.

"Perhaps for someone like _you_…"

"Hey, what's _that_ supposed to mean, buster?"

"It _means_ that I think you're easily impressed." Cato said. He wasn't one to hide his opinion, and he knew Wren knew that.

"That may be true, _but_ at least I _can_ be impressed. You _never_ seem to find _anything_ interesting, Cato, besides yours and Grampa Scary's _work_. You should really get out more."

"I'm thirteen. There really isn't any place for me to go to…"

"You just haven't looked yet, bro."

"Because there isn't anything to find."

"Speaking of which, why didn't daddy come and visit on our birthday? I thought he would at least show up yesterday…" Wren said suddenly. Cato's face was expressionless. He was the proud brother of an extreme case of ADD…

"I don't know, maybe he had work…" he said, and returned to his book.

"What work? He doesn't work."

"Oh, yes. Silly me to think that. _Why_ would he work?" Cato suddenly felt bitter.

"Hey, be cool, bro-"

"I _am_ cool…" he muttered. He grabbed his water bottle, but noticed it had frozen. He grimaced. Powers took things too literally sometimes…

"…..do you know what _cool_ is?" Wren asked. Cato gave her a look before melting the ice in the bottle.

"It would depend on which definition you mean." He said.

"I mean cool as in chilled out. Y'know, _relaxed_?"

"Well then, _yes_, I am relaxed." He said, and took a drink. "I just don't find the idea of mother sitting in an asylum while father is out having fun-time very _fair_, is all…"

"Wow, you really hate daddy, don't you?" Wren asked. Cato blinked once at the question.

For once, he didn't have an answer….

….

Dancing class. A curriculum that took place in the auditorium and was composed of aspiring young children with dreams of becoming the best dancer they could possibly be.

And, apparently, as Cato had observed from the students, being just that required the students to have eating disorders, a complete lack of manners, and blonde hair.

Cato wasn't any of those things, be he wasn't in the class, of course. Wren was, and she wasn't any of those things either. Knowing this, it was a complete shocker for her classmates to find that she somehow managed to be the best dancer of all of them. A non-anorexic with the ability to Bravura without screwing up once? _Blasphemous_.

Cato chuckled once to himself as he observed Darla Swan, the second best dancer, attempt to keep up with Wren as she glided across the floor. She failed, as always, and went steaming to the changing rooms, yelling about how the pianist's tempo was too fast for that dance number. Such terrible excuses.

It was Cato's job to watch Wren practice every day so that she could get feedback from him that wasn't fluffed up with too many 'good jobs' and 'you did greats'. Cato was completely honest, and held nothing back, and Wren was always thankful for it. So, he dutifully watched her performance every day for his big sister.

Hilda, the dance instructor, called for a water break in her heavy German accent, and Wren skipped over to Cato in her white leotard.

"White isn't your color." He said before she could flood him with questions on how well she did compared to the other girls. She huffed.

"Yeah, well, at least I'm not breaking school rules wearing this. _Where_ is your uniform?" she asked, and sat down next to him in one of the cushioned red chairs. Cato merely looked down at himself and shrugged.

"Dunno," he said, and waved his fingers mysteriously. "Must be _magic_." Indeed, he had changed into a grey long sleeve and black pants with sneakers, and it was against school rules to do so during school hours. But, since he was in the stands of the auditorium until school ended, he figured why not, and changed. There was no point in staying in that horrible uniform when all your real classes had ended. Lucky enough for him, the last class of the day was study hall, so he came here, where he could retire the wretched school clothes earlier than the rest.

"Anyway," Wren took her water bottle from her bag. "How was I?" she asked and took a sip. When she put the bottle back, Bach poked his small head from one of the pockets, and she patted him lovingly.

"You were better than any of them, but you need to work on your footing during the second part." Cato said.

"And that's it?"

"That, _and_ you need to fix your bun." He said, and pointed to her hair. It was falling from the bun she had made it into.

"Oh, dammit." She said, and quickly adjusted it. "I hate stupid buns. I want my pigtails."

"Back to work, ladies!" Hilda called, and clapped her hands together once loudly. Wren sighed heavily before walking back over to the stage, still adjusting her hair. They all got in line, and the pianist began the same tune once again.

….

Back at home, Cato walked right up to his room and closed the door behind him. He retrieved his uniform from his bag and tossed it carelessly to the hamper before taking his school books and sitting at the large desk. He turned on his lamp and opened a notebook to a clean page, then opened the school book at the top of the book stack to work. He read the title, and grunted.

"Mythology. Archimedes , remind me again _why_ I decided to take this class…" he muttered. He turned his head to see that his familiar had changed to her were-form; a teen girl, nearly his height, with tanned, scaled skin that had black, striped patterns placed randomly along her body. Her straight black hair was cut just above her shoulders and framed her face, which still had very snake-like features-a thin mouth that reached just under her yellowed eyes, and almost no nose. The snake girl wore simple black pants, jesus water walker sandals, and a black hoodie with a snake hieroglyph printed on the front in white.

She walked over and leaned on the desk, an apple in her hand. "Because, you wanted to sssee if any more stuff besides magic truly existed in the world, and what better place to help your studies than mythology classss?"

"Still having issues with that lisp?" Cato asked, disgruntled by her answer. She nodded and cut a piece of her apple with a small pocket knife.

"Not my fault, boy." She said, and brought the sliver of apple to her mouth. She opened it, showing her only four teeth, which happened to be fangs, and placed the apple slice inside, swallowing it whole afterwards. Cato watched this all happen, completely unaffected. It was normal for him to have a talking snake-woman in his room.

"No, I suppose not. I don't know why I even bothered with this class," he said, turning back to his book. "The teacher is a complete idiot when it comes to teaching the simplest things, and this book gives vague information on everything. It doesn't help me at all with my purpose."

"Your purpose being that you want to find out whether things like the tooth fairy actually exissst. Cato, you won't find information like that in the classroom; you would have better luck at a comic-con…" she said. Cato huffed and leaned back in his seat.

"I have a headache…"

"Of course you do, boy."

"All these assignments these teachers have been tossing at me from their thrones of superficial superiority…"

"They aren't difficult, at leassst."

"That's the problem; I'm not being challenged. 'An unchallenged mind with eventually rot from lack of proper use'. That's what Dr. Crane said when I first met him…"

"Yesss, but an over-active mind will ssswiftly explode from lack of _rest_." Archimedes said.

"Point being?" Cato looked at her. She smiled and pointed to an object located at the far right corner of his room. Cato shook his head. "We aren't allowed to go anywhere, remember? I'm grounded."

"That hasn't ssstopped us before. We'll just ssneak out when everyone is sleeping." She said. Cato gave this some thought. It _had_ been a while since he went out at night, and he _could_ use a small break. He gave one more look at the stack of school books.

"Fine. Just let me finish my work and eat dinner. We'll go out at around eleven o'clock." He said.

"That's fine." Archimedes said, and walked over to his book shelf, which was stuffed with non-fiction books and encyclopedias. "Maybe we can purchase sssome better reading material while we're out. I'm getting sssick of educational reading…" she sighed, and took from the top shelf a book on Egypt's pharaohs.

"Fine, but nothing dumb." He said. Archimedes sat on his bed and opened the book.

"Hardly."

…..

They were at the docks. Cato had changed into a grey and black striped sweater to keep himself warm. A dark red baseball cap with the band name 'The 69 Eyes' printed on it in metallic blue rested on his head. Archimedes changed to her cobra form, and she sat draped over his shoulders, all six feet of her, as he leaned over on the railing, looking out at the darkened harbor.

'_So, where to, next?'_ she asked. Cato sniffed and kept looking forward. His skateboard was resting on the ground, his foot resting on it. A grim looking pumpkin with blood dripping from his glowing eyes was painted on the bottom of it, with the words 'Trick 'r Beat' written in bold red below it.

"I don't know." He said, and adjusted one of his boarding gloves. His gloves were the only safety precaution he took. He thought of helmets and knee pads as nothing short of _lame_. "Maybe we could go to the park or something. I don't want to go home yet."

'_Whatever you wish, Cato.'_ Archimedes nodded her head and looked at Cato's watch. It was 1:30 a.m. _'Shall we go, then?'_ she asked. Cato nodded and tore his gaze from the harbor to his board.

"Alright." He muttered, and kicked off in the direction of the park. He sped forward towards a stairway and leapt up, grinding down the rusted rail and landing perfectly before speeding off.

'_Careful, boy.'_ Archimedes mused. Cato sniggered.

"You're _fine_. You're wrapped around my torso…" he said, his eyes focused ahead of him. Whenever his familiar went with him when he skated, she would wrap herself around his shoulders and torso to keep from falling off. This made Cato look weird, but she never liked using her own skateboard in her were-form. She thought of it as a ridiculous sport.

After jumping a pile of milk-crates, Cato turned sharply down another path, gliding by various apartments and small shops. Skating was really the only hobby Cato enjoyed doing besides reading. It helped him clear his thoughts, and he enjoyed the amount of focus it took to keep the board in check.

Although, like Wren sometimes got caught up too much in her dancing, Cato got caught too much into his boarding. Sometimes, he would focus so much on what he was doing, he would completely lose perspective on his environment, causing him to wipe-out.

He did exactly that, losing balance over a rather large crack in the pavement and falling flat on the palms of his hands. The board sailed backwards and hit a trash can as he sat up and dusted himself off.

"See? Gloves are all that is necessary." He said, and adjusted his gloves. Archimedes slithered off of him and huffed.

'_It doesn't take away the fact that you still messed up, boy.'_ She said. Cato shrugged and hoisted himself up. He walked over and retrieved his board, checking it over to make sure the bearings were still fine.

"Nothing wrong; good." He said, and carried it over to his familiar. "Let's go." He said, but she shook her head.

'_I need just a moment to retrieve my confidence in your skating abilities.'_ She said. Cato rolled his eyes and slumped down next to her.

"Woose…" he muttered, and spun the wheels of the board absentmindedly.

"Well, well! Looky what we gots _here_, fellas…" someone said. Cato looked to his left to see some drunkards walking towards them.

"Can we leave _now_?" he asked quickly. A small hint of fear trickled through his mind. Archimedes nodded and wrapped her long body around him again. He stood to leave, but one of the drunks snatched his collar and pulled him back.

"Where're ya goin', uh, guy?" he slurred, his sickly breath making Cato's nose wrinkle. Archimedes reared her hooded head and hissed menacingly at the drunk, and he pulled his hand back. "J-jeez, almighdy! Yuh gotta snake on yer shoulder, guy!" he yelled. The other drunks laughed at his panicked voice. Cato only scoffed.

"_Perhaps_, were you not as disgustingly wasted as you are currently, you may have noticed that before deciding to lay your filthy hands upon my person." He said. The drunk he was speaking to waved his hands in the air.

"Oooooh, speakin' all _proper_ n' shit…you must not be f-from these parts, kid." He turned dizzily to his comrades. "Y'all think he's from 'round here?" he asked. They looked over Cato once, then shook their heads stupidly.

"Don't seem the part fer these parts, Jess." One said. "Carries hisself all high n' mighty…"

"Ne'er seen 'im. Mus' be a richy bitch, Jess." another said before falling to the ground and picking himself back up. The first drunk they called Jess shook his head and turned back to Cato.

"Didn' think so.." he muttered, and stepped toward Cato. Archimedes hissed again, louder, and Jess stopped. One of the other guys laughed and stepped forward.

"She'll make a pretty fuckin' wall hangin', don' ya t'ink?" he asked, and took a knife from his pocket. Cato froze as the drunk flipped the blade out, and watched the metal glint viciously. The group stepped forward now, not caring about Archimedes' threats. Cato couldn't move.

"Alright, I've seen plenty for one night…." Someone said lazily from behind him. Cato blinked and turned his head, hoping it would be a police officer. His jaw dropped.

It most definitely wasn't an officer.

Klarion Bleak stepped toward them casually, his hands clasped behind his head and a smirk on his devilish face. The orange longhaired cat, Teekl, walked in a dignified manner beside him, her nose in the air and her tail out straight. Cato wanted to die.

Jess gave a toothless grin. "Hey, buddy. Don'cha know it ain't Halloween yet?" he asked, pointing to Klarion's clothes. The others laughed hysterically at the lame joke, and Klarion raised a brow. Cato scanned his clothes; an all-black suit with the jacket's hem reaching past Klarion's knees, and a high shirt collar. The sleeves flared at the end, and tufts of Klarion's hair were shaped into devil-like horns. Cato sighed.

'My_ father….' _He thought.

"I don't much like being teased, especially by toothless geezers such as yourself…" Klarion said simply_. _Jess' smile turned to a frown. Cato touched his temple.

"This ain't yer business, bud…" Jess said, with an attempt at a menacing tone, but the slurring ruined it all, making him sound idiotic. Klarion cocked his head to the side, his hands still clasped behind it, and stopped walking. He was now only feet from Jess.

"But, _bud_, it _is_ my business, seeing as this is my son you're pulling a knife on…" he said cheerily. Jess huffed.

"Yer son's a pomous-ass." He burped. Klarion's smirk turned to a grin.

"Yeah, I know. He's too damned smart for his own good, and he has a problem with dealing with his own situations. _But_ I'd rather have that, than a shitfaced, toothless, slum-dweller who couldn't tell his right nut from his left." He said. Cato couldn't tell whether or not Klarion was defending him. Jess seemed to take a moment to process Klarion's insult, and Klarion waited patiently. When Jess finally figured it all out, his face turned red with anger.

"Yuh jus' insulted me…" he said, pointing to Klarion, who nodded his head happily.

"Very good, _Gomer_! Now let's see if you can count to ten!" he said with enthusiasm. Cato sighed.

'He's picking a fight…' he thought. After that, Klarion looked over at his son and winked, then turned back to the angry drunk. The other drunkards were getting equally angry.

"Le's take 'im out, Jess. He's a fuckin' prick wit' no manners!" the one with the knife said. The others mumbled in agreement and stepped forward to Klarion this time. Klarion yawned and looked down to Teekl.

"Scare 'em off, dear." He said. She nodded and walked in front of her master. Cato watched as she morphed into her were-form, the drunks staring in horror at her as she did so. When she was fully changed, she growled, bearing her teeth and claws evilly. The drunks yelled thing like, 'Devil', 'Voo-doo', etc., before turning and scurrying sloppily away, screaming their heads off. Klarion laughed as they went, and Teekl changed back to her normal form. Cato sighed heavily.

"You didn't even fight them." He said. Klarion shrugged.

"Neither did you. You just stood there."

"I wasn't picking a fight with them, though."

"So? You mean to say you won't fight if you aren't the reason for it? It's called _defending yourself_, kiddo." Klarion mused. Cato felt his cheeks become warm. He was in a corner.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Looking out for my favorite son, is all." Klarion said, and stepped over to him.

"I'm your _only_ son." Cato said, then looked suspiciously at his father. "Or _am_ I?" he asked. Klarion frowned and knocked once on Cato's head with his knuckles.

"Look here, _kid_; the only chick I'm screwing is your mother." He scolded. "And have you _seen_ your mother's body? Who the _hell_ would cheat on _that_?" Cato wanted to gag.

"Please….stop.." he choked. This was disgusting. Klarion's smirk returned, and he patted Cato on the back.

"You're the one who brought it up, not me. So, blame yourself." He said, and waved to Archimedes. "Hello." She nodded hello and ducked behind Cato's head. She was shy with everyone but Cato, unless they were attacking him, then she was a _scary_ bitch. Klarion shrugged and adjusted his suit jacket. "So, how are things?" he asked, and began to walk down the street. Cato had half a mind not to follow, but decided to anyway, since Klarion was walking in the direction Cato needed to go.

"Perfectly fine," he said when he caught up. "My mother is in an asylum, my father is chaos personified with the maturity level of an infant, and I was nearly attacked by a mob of drunks. I'm doing _perfect_." He said. Klarion nodded.

"Um-hmm, and how is your sister?" he asked. Cato sighed.

"She's fine. Her dancing is going well, and she cries in her room every time we return from visiting mother." He said. Klarion nodded again.

"Hmm, something tells me you're trying to put me on a guilt-trip." He said.

"Perhaps." Cato muttered.

"It won't work."

"Of course not."

"Know why?"

"Not that I would care, but _please_, explain."

"Because things could be a lot fucking worse."

Cato stopped, and looked up at his father, who stopped as well. Both stared back at each other.

"_What_-"

"You could be living on the street, but you don't; you live in a _mansion_. You could be dumb as a back of rocks, but you aren't; you're smarter than your damned _teachers_. You could starve from lack of food, like the rest of these street urchins do every day, but you won't; you have a butler to prepare your meals. I could go on, but I think you're smart enough to get the hint I'm _'tossing at you from my throne of superficial superiority'_…" Klarion said, his face etched with seriousness. Cato blinked once.

"I could be like that drunk, but I'm not…." He muttered. Klarion nodded, and Cato continued. "He most likely has a family to go home to. It may not be at all perfect, but it's more than what Wren and I have…" he finished in a whisper. Klarion's jaw tightened. Cato smirked. "Are you getting the hint I'm tossing at you?" Klarion stared hard at his son before giving an exasperated sigh and rubbing his head.

"You are the master at giving headaches…" he said, and smiled weakly.

"Sorry I'm making you _think_…" Cato said, and folded his arms. Klarion looked at him.

"Do you hate me, or something?" he asked. Cato remained quiet for a long moment.

"A lot of the time, yeah…" he said, and kicked a rock.

"Why?"

"You're childish."

"You sound like Lenore."

"How did she even like you in the first place?" Klarion thought for a minute.

"I have amazing charm and great looks. That's how." He said. Cato snorted.

"She obviously didn't like you for your _wit_.." he muttered. Klarion sighed again.

"You know….you _really_ need to get laid…" he said as-a-matter-of-factly.

"_You_ need to get hit by a cement truck.." Cato breathed, clenching his fists. "This is why I hate you."

"Why? Because I'm humorous?"

"Because you take _nothing_ anyone says seriously! You were being serious before, but now you're just, _ugh_!" Cato threw his hands in the air in anger. "You're so childish! I can't get through a _single_ conversation with you with feeling pissed off at the end! I just want to _strangle_ you most times, I _swear_!" Cato turned back to Klarion with a shred of hope that he was listening. Instead, Klarion seemed like he was attempting very hard not to laugh. Cato gave him a death glare. "What's so funny…"

"Nothing, I swear…"Klarion said, cracking a smile. Cato's eyes narrowed.

"_Liar_."

"_Really_, it's nothing. You just sound a _lot_ like your mother right now, it's weird." Klarion giggled after this. Cato was surprised.

"Huh?" normally he wouldn't say, 'huh', but that was all he could muster. Klarion grinned.

"Your mother says the same exact thing to me, ha-ha." He said. "Only she really _does_ strangle me. I didn't know you cared so much about me, kiddo." Klarion said. Cato shook his head.

"But-wha-"

Klarion wrapped his arm around Cato's shoulder and led him down the street. "C'mon, I know a good candy place we can raid." He said. Cato numbly allowed what was happening to happen, not really knowing what exactly was going on.

"Um…"

"I'm really sorry, you know, Cato." Klarion said as they walked. Cato looked up at Klarion, who looked half serious. "Your life isn't easy, and that's partly my fault. But don't worry, we all get along somehow. I've been doing it for _years_. You also need to learn to suck it up. I know, it might be difficult, since they don't teach the art of 'dealing with it' in class, but _hey_, I heard learning outside the classroom is all the rage for you nerds." He said.

"An insult to cover your half-assed apology. Very well done, father." Cato said, and Klarion bowed his head.

"Anytime, kid." He said, and began to hum to himself. Cato looked straight ahead.

"I apologize for my rudeness earlier.." he said quietly. Klarion waved it off.

"If I got ticked off every time someone was rude to me, this whole world would be destroyed by now. We had a family fight, so whatever. I heard fights within families brings them closer together anyway." He said. Cato nodded, and looked at Archimedes, who seemed rather uncomfortable with Klarion being so close to her.

'_Did you get _any_ of this?' _he asked. She shook her head.

'_No…_' she said. Cato looked back in front of him, his anger surprisingly dulled.

'_My father,'_ he thought, _'is an odd character, indeed….'_

…_.._

**Author's Note: OMG! I'm back, yo! Lol, sorry I was gone for so long; Last few months of school was **_**hectic**_**! But now, Summer Vacation is here! Woo! Now I can focus on my writing again, yay! Klarion was finally introduced in this chapter, and I wanted to really establish the oddness between him and Cato. That's why Wren wasn't around for it all. Odd is all I can use to describe this father/son relationship, ha-ha. ^^ Hoped you liked the chapter. :D**


	4. Conference

_BAM!_

"Huh? Wha?" Cato sat straight up and rubbed his eyes. He looked for the source of the noise, and found that Wren had slammed a rather large book onto the lunch table. He looked at the title. "Oh, no..." he muttered. It was Wren's World History book. "Leslie Randall..."

"Yes! Leslie Randall!" Wren said angrily, and sat down. Cato was now both tired and wary. He had been out quite late, roaming Gotham with his father, doing what he wanted to _believe_ was 'bonding', but he didn't know if that was the correct word to use. Now, he was about to hear another of Wren's angry rants about Leslie Randall, who was apparently the evilest student ever to attend Gotham Academy and Wren's World History class.

"What did he do _this_ time, Wren?" Cato asked, and yawned loudly. Wren huffed.

"What didn't that prick do? He answered all the questions!" she said, like it made perfect sense. Cato rolled his eyes.

"Oh, _no_. We better call Gotham Police, before this guy does any other crazy things." He said. Wren went on.

"And he answered them all correctly!"

"Answering questions _correctly_? That's a sure sign of a criminal, right there. He should be locked away for good." Cato said, and rested his head back on the table. Wren slammed the book again, and he sat back up, feeling agitated. "What _else_ did he do? Did he turn in his homework? I heard that's at the same level as _murder_." He said.

"You _obviously_ don't understand the situation here." Wren said.

"Wow, you _think_? Wren, the kid answered some questions correctly today. Yesterday, he opened the door for the teacher when she left, and you somehow made a thirty minute rant about that alone. For the past _year_, you have been able to take all the normal things he's done, and tried to completely make him out to be a bad guy. What the hell?" when he finished, the siblings glared at each other for long minutes, each silent. Wren finally ended it.

"I was the top kid in that class before he showed up." She said. Cato frowned.

"He transferred here three days after school began…" he said. Wren nodded.

"Yeah, but in those three days, I had that teacher completely wrapped around my little finger. I was the smart one. Then this Leslie guy comes and steals my freakin' thunder!" she said, and stood up to pace. Cato groaned; pacing meant more ranting. "He's out to get me, Cato. Don't you see?" she asked.

"I see that you are more paranoid than _Riddler_, okay?" he replied. Wren waved away his comment, and continued to pace.

"He's evil…" she muttered. Cato shook his head. He couldn't take much more insanity from his family.

"Wren, look. How do you even know that he's 'evil' as you say? Give me evidence." He said. Wren looked at him and stopped pacing.

"Isn't it obvious?" she asked. Cato shook his head vigorously.

"_No_…" he said. Wren walked up and smacked her hands down onto the table surface and leaned in close to Cato until their faces were inches apart.

"His name is _Leslie_." She said quietly, like it was some secret. Cato blinked.

"You. Are. An _idiot_." He said. "An insane, paranoid, _idiot_…." He eased her away from his and he lay his head back down, determined to not get back up until the bell for next class rang. Wren sat right next to him.

"I mean his name is suspicious! What parent gives their son a girl's name, anyway? It makes no sense!" Cato gave it his all to not kill his sister.

"If you truly were well educated in the subject of history like you claim, then you would know that the name 'Leslie' was originally a _boy's_ name, not a girl's. It's perfectly normal for a guy today to be called 'Leslie'. Also, someone cannot be ruled out as good or evil based solely on their name. It's ridiculous." He muttered.

"Not true. As soon as I heard the name Lex Luthor, I knew he was a bad guy. And look, he's Superman's arch nemesis!"

"Coincidence."

"Bah! There's no reasoning with you!" Wren said and crossed her arms.

"Yeah…_I'm_ being unreasonable…" Cato yawned again.

"You're a jerk."

"Yup."

…..

When the bell for next class rang, Cato hurriedly gathered his things and headed for Calculus before Wren could get another word in about Leslie Randall. He knew it wasn't fair to the student, but Cato really hated the kid simply because Wren wouldn't stop talking about him.

"I mean, _really_!" he said angrily to himself. "Soon I'll be _agreeing_ with her squabbling!" He took out his math book and rested it on the table before looking up to the board to read his assignment. He frowned. The teacher hadn't updated his class' assignment section yet. "Silly, incompetent, infuriating-"

"Mr. Wayne? Have you something to share with the class?" the teacher, Mr. Wells, asked. Cato fixed his gaze on the old man.

"It's _Bleak_, sir. Cato _Bleak_. And I noticed that you haven't written today's assignment on the board. That is all." He said. Mr. Wells looked over to the board and nodded.

"Ah, yes, I see that." He said, and remained seated at his desk. Cato's eye twitched.

"_Well_, will you _please_ write it down, so I may _copy_ it?" he asked, forcing politeness with every fiber of his being. Mr. Wells seemed to think Cato's request over before answering.

"Well, I suppose." He said, and walked over to the board and updated the assignment. Cato sighed as he copied the work down in his planner. He made it _this_ far.

"Now, to make it through the _rest_ of this _retched_ day…" he whispered to himself, and began on his homework after copying it so he could turn it in at the end of class. He already knew the material for this chapter, so there was no point for him to listen to the teacher give his sloppy lesson on the subject.

When Cato reached the fifth question, the boy next to him raised his hand. "Mr. Wells, Cato isn't paying attention." The boy said. Cato stared at the paper as the class turned to look at him. The boy caught Cato's attention with a smug grin on his large face.

'Son of a bi-'

"Mr. Wayne, I need you to pay attention, so you will understand the material." Mr. Wells scolded. Cato clenched his jaw.

"I already know the material, sir. I'm currently doing my homework." He said. Some of the students snorted in disbelief; he couldn't possibly understand this. They couldn't, why should he? Mr. Wells seemed to be thinking the same thing, and he smiled.

"Now, Mr. Wayne, I hardly believe that you could understand the material when we haven't even gone over this chapter-"

"You may not have, but I did, weeks ago, while you were still teaching chapter six, _sir_." Cato said curtly. His patience was running on fumes. Mr. Wells frowned.

"Well, since you believe yourself to be so _smart_, Mr. Wayne. Perhaps you could solve one of these problems on the board for us?" he said, and pointed to the calculus problems written in chalk. Cato stood and walked briskly to the board. He picked up one of the chalk pieces and set to work on the first problem. "Choosing the simplest one, I see." Mr. Wells said. Cato kept his eyes on his work as he replied.

"Actually, I plan on doing all of them, if that's okay, _sir_." He said, then went silent, his eyes darting over his formulas and products as he went. The class was silent to, as they watched in near awe how quickly Cato was solving the complex problems like they were less than nothing. When he was finally done, he set what was left of the chalk down and wiped his hands clean of what it left on them. The board was completely filled with numbers and formulas now, and Mr. Wells seemed disgruntled.

"Mr. Wayne-"

"Yes, Charles?" Cato asked, using the old man's first name. Mr. Wells' face went red at this gesture.

"Young, man, you will refer to me as Mr. Wells at all times-"

"If you want me to say your name properly, then you must say _my_ name properly as well. My name is Cato _Bleak_, not Cato Wayne. Get it right, _sir_." He said. The students gasped at Cato's boldness. Cato ignored them. He was tired, and agitated, and covered in chalk. He was done with today, and he simply no longer cared.

"Why, you condescending little-"

"Can we get this over with? I have work that I would like to finish before end of class." Cato said, leaving all politeness abandoned. Mr. Wells' face was the equivalent of a cherry tomato. He shot his hand up and pointed to the door.

"Principles office, _now_." He stammered. Cato shrugged and went over to his desk to retrieve his things, not caring to look at the boy who got him in trouble in the first place. The students watched him reach the door and yank it open. Before Cato stepped out, however, he heard on of the girls say something.

"Wow, Leslie, you got that kid in _trouble_." She whispered. Cato's eyes widened and he spun around to look back at the large boy. The boy was looking back, and seemed rather content with the events that just played out. Cato looked at the tag on the boy's lapel. It read: 'Randall'.

'Son of a bi-'

"Out, Mr. Bleak!" Mr. Wells called loudly. Cato cast one more glance at the boy before leaving the classroom, not even noticing that the teacher called his name correctly. As he walked down the hall towards the stairs, Cato shook his head in disbelief.

"Wren was right; that son of a bitch _is_ evil…"

…..

"Cato, I'm incredibly disappointed in you."

"Yeah…"

"You're one of the brightest students attending this academy."

"Yeah…"

"Are you even paying attention, Mr. Bleak?"

"No, not really…"

"…"

Cato leaned back in the cushioned seat. It was an improvement compared to the metal chairs he was forced to set himself in every class. Principle Marks looked over his glasses at Cato from behind his desk and gave a disapproving frown. His grey moustache covered his upper lip completely, and seemed to move left and right as he spoke. Cato hated that.

"Young man, there was no reason for you to give such an outburst in class. You could have been more reasonable-"

"I was being as reasonable as I could possibly be, sir. Wells was being unreasonable-"

"_Mr_. Wells, Cato."

"Whatever." Principle Marks sighed and rubbed his head in agitation.

"You were doing so well, Cato. What happened?" he asked. Cato looked over at the principle and raised a brow.

"Do you know who I am, sir?" he asked. Principle Marks nodded in understanding.

"I understand that someone with your particular background can undergo more stress than most people-"

"That's putting it too lightly."

"Even so, Mr. Bleak, you shouldn't be taking your troubles out on the faculty and students. It's unethical."

"Hey, I didn't start it! I was minding my own business and that _Randall_ kid stuck his fat nose in my business!" Cato was becoming furious. His normal timidness around people was becoming less and less an issue as his anger continued to rise. "That kid is going to get the shit beat out of him if he keeps it up!"

"Cato Bleak!"

"It's _true_, though! Snitches don't last long in Gotham, Marks. Just saying." He said. He didn't mean anything suggestive by it; he was only stating the facts. Principle Marks didn't seem to understand this, and his expression became dark.

"There will be _no_ making threats in this school, Mr. Bleak."

"I didn't mean it like that." Cato muttered, and slumped back in his seat. Suddenly it didn't seem so comfortable. Principle Wells sighed heavily and checked his watch.

"I'm going to need to speak with Mr. Wayne at a parent/teacher conference. We need to discuss this stress you are obviously going through."

"Have fun with that."

"You will, of course, be present."

"I won't say anything."

"That's perfectly acceptable."

"Good." Cato stared down at his lap as the principle looked sternly at the boy for a moment.

"You're a good kid, Cato, and an excellent student. Remember that." He said reassuredly. Cato cast him a quick glance, then looked back down.

"Yeah, thanks."

…...

When Cato exited the office, it was during the final class of the day. "Wren is going to kill me if I'm not there on time…" he muttered, and took off towards the auditorium.

"Hey, punk." Came a voice. Cato turned angrily around, recognizing the voice instantly. Leslie Randall was standing there, looking smug. His blonde hair was combed back on his neckless head which seemed too small for his round body. A flood of fat jokes filled Cato's mouth, but he kept it closed.

"Yes, Leslie?" he said instead. Leslie smirked.

"Did you have fun getting yelled at?" he asked.

"…Loads."

"Good."

"Is that all? May I leave now?" Cato asked, and turned to leave, but Leslie stopped him.

"Wait!" he called. Cato did as he was told, not really knowing why. He turned back to Leslie.

"_What_?" Leslie walked up to him until they were only a foot away. Cato smelled his breath, which reeked of the school's lunch.

"I'm not afraid of you. Just letting you know." Leslie said. "You're just a runt."

"Yet I'm taller than you." Cato retorted. He was nearly a head taller than Leslie.

"I can make your life real hard to live, runt." Leslie said, ignoring Cato's comment. Cato snorted.

"My family has already beaten you to it, big-boy." The insult slipped out, and Cato realized right afterward. Leslie frowned.

"You calling me fat?" he asked. Cato looked at Leslie's triple-chin and gave a 'hmph'.

"I'm certainly not calling you _thin_." he said. 'I'm about to be eaten alive.' He thought to himself.

Instead he was punched in the eye.

….

"Wren, I told you, I'm _fine_!" Cato placed his hand over Wren's continuously cursing mouth, which only made her raise her voice. They were at home in the kitchen, and Alfred was attempting to tend to Cato's eye while Cato attempted to tend to Wren's cursing. Bruce was leaning against the counter, his brows furrowed. Tim was next to him, finding the whole scene quite amusing.

"Every time I visit, these two are in trouble for something." He said. Bruce shook his head.

"Too much like their mother…"

"I'll _kill_ the creep for touching my baby brother!" Wren said after breaking free from Cato. Her eyes were burning red. "I _told_ you, Cato! I _told_ you! That prick is _evil_!"

"Miss Bleak! Language!" Alfred said a little louder than he usually would. Wren wasn't paying attention, and she continued her rant. Bruce ignored her and spoke directly to Cato.

"Why did this happen?" he asked. Cato sighed and relayed the entire story to Bruce who absorbed every detail.

"So, you made fun of his weight, and this happened." He said. Cato nodded.

"But I _swear_, he started it." He said.

"It doesn't matter who started it, Cato. You shouldn't allow yourself to get into any fights." Bruce said. Cato suddenly wondered if Bruce had ever even gotten into a fight.

'Probably not…' he thought angrily, and winced when Alfred applied some pressure.

"Sorry, sir." Alfred said.

"It's fine. Don't apologize." He said.

"So, when do I need to take you to the parent/teacher conference?" Bruce asked. Wren had taken her rant to the living room, and Cato appreciated the quiet.

"Tomorrow before school." He said. Bruce nodded.

"You're grounded, but until I get the full details from your principle and teacher, I won't determine how harshly you will be punished." He said.

"That's reasonable."

"Good. How is his eye, Alfred?" Tim asked. Alfred chuckled.

"He'll be fine, sir. Some days of bruising and a few more of the bruise fading, then he'll be right as rain. And with his ability to heal quickly, the bruise may be gone before tomorrow. I don't know." He said.

"Hello, _mom_?" Wren's voice called from the living room. Everyone in the kitchen froze. "Yeah, hi! _Listen_! Some fat kid at school beat up Cato! Can I kill that kid?" she yelled. Alfred tsked and went back to Cato's eye as Bruce and Tim rushed to the living room.

"Wren, _don't_ put that on speaker pho-"

'-ill that son of a bitch! God dammit! Fuck! I'll kick that kid's fat, gelatinous ass all the way to Mars! _Shit_!' Lenore's supremely pissed off voice shouted through the speaker phone. Alfred smiled again.

"Your mother," he muttered, "Always had a way with words…"

….

The next day, Cato's eye was nearly healed, leaving only a slight hint of yellow around it. At least he was able to hide it under his long bangs. He hoped he wouldn't have to run into Leslie and get his other eye blackened to match the first. After putting on his uniform, he trudged downstairs. Wren was bouncing happily around as she always was.

"Ready to go!" she said. Cato huffed and followed her out to the car where Bruce waited for them.

"This is really going to suck…" he muttered to himself.

….

Bruce pulled into the visitors parking lot and parked. Wren jumped out and skipped up to the entrance, then sat and waited for the others to catch up. Sometimes Cato envied her never-ending energy.

"Alright, let's go." Bruce said and walked inside. When they reached principles office, Cato saw Mr. Wells standing to the side, and Principle Marks sitting behind his desk.

"Please, sit." He said, gesturing to the seats in front. The three did so, and waited for the principle to begin. He cleared his throat. "As you must have heard-"

"Hold it!" came a voice. Everyone looked to the door. Lenore was standing in the doorway with Klarion. She wore a black blouse and dress pants. Her hair was in a low ponytail and her familiar, Poe, was seated on her shoulder. Klarion was in his normal clothes and Teekl walked right next to him. The two strolled in and closed the door behind them, then looked over to the principle.

"You can't start a parent/teacher conference without the parents, now, can you?" Klarion said, and leaned against the wall. Lenore walked over to the desk and sat on the edge. Wren giggled and waved to them. Bruce's expression became dark. Mr. Wells' and Principle Marks' eyes were wide as saucers. Cato buried his face in his hands.

"God release me." He murmured. He didn't believe in God, but he had to pray to _something_.

"Now," Klarion said. "Who is this Leslie and why is she beating on my son?" he asked. Cato groaned.

"Klarion, Leslie is a boy." Lenore sighed. Klarion's eyebrows rose.

"Who the hell names their son _Leslie_?" he asked.

"That's what I said!" Wren said. "Isn't that weird?" Klarion nodded.

"I thought it was just some girl who really liked him…"

"And why would you assume that a girl who gave our son a black eye _likes_ him?" Lenore asked.

"Sorry, it's just I've been hanging around a certain abusive lover for so long that I just automatically think that's the norm now…" Klarion said with a grin.

"Can we _please_ get back to the real reason why I'm here?" Cato asked warily.

"Which is?" Lenore asked.

"He disrespected me in front of my class." Mr. Wells said. Lenore turned to him.

"Oh, it's _you_. I can't believe you're still working here…" she muttered angrily, and looked to Cato. "He's annoying, isn't he?" she asked. Cato nodded his head.

"Immensely." He said. Bruce coughed once.

"Why are you two here?" he asked.

"It's a parent/teacher conference. We're his parents. _Duh_." Klarion said, and looked over his black nails. Bruce went to say something else, but Klarion snapped his fingers and Bruce froze in place. "That's better. Now, as were saying….what where we saying?"

"Mr. Wayne was being disrespectful in my class." Mr. Wells said.

"For Christ's sakes, my name is Cato _Bleak_. This is the reason I got sent to the office. He wouldn't call me by my correct name." Cato said. Lenore looked to Mr. Wells.

"Call him Cato Bleak, geezer, or else." She said, and gave him a menacing glare. Mr. Wells stuttered, but kept quiet. Lenore smiled. "There, problem solved." She said. "Now, back to this Leslie kid." She said.

"I was not informed that Mr. Randall assaulted your son." Principle Marks said. Lenore shrugged.

"Of course you didn't. Cato didn't tell." She said.

"He should have informed one of the faculty-"

"No, he shouldn't, and he didn't."

"_Please_ explain, Miss Crane." Principle Marks said. He was taking the fact that crazy people were in his office surprisingly well.

"Snitches don't last long in Gotham, Marks." She said simply.

"So I've heard from your son." He said back.

"What?"

"He claimed that it was Mr. Randall telling on him that got him in trouble in the first place." Marks explained. Lenore nodded.

"Yeah, that kid's not gonna survive the real world."

"You've yet to explain that part."

"Whenever I help out Scarecrow, I have to make sure that the recruits for our team don't even _seem_ like a snitch. A snitch can ruin an entire organization with one wired conversation. Even so, after the organization is destroyed, the leader does everything necessary to find out who the snitch was. It isn't hard to find a rat, and when we _do_ find it, it gets pretty gruesome…"

"You are comparing society to a criminal group. I highly doubt Mr. Randall with be joining up with something like that." Marks said.

"Please. In Gotham, that's the only real way to make money."

"I must disagree with you."

"Oh, really? Did you know this academy is funded mainly by but the Maroni Mafia? In this city, the criminals are criminals, the cops are criminals, and the schools are the training grounds for them. That's why Gotham runs so smoothly, even with the crazies running all over the place; criminals are more organized than any high-end society in the world. Joker would make a great president. He's the most organized man of them all."

"I shudder to the thought." Marks said.

"Yup, but that's just how it is." Lenore said.

"Back to the subject of your son…"

"Yes, of course."

"I noticed yesterday that Cato was rather stressed, and have concluded that that was the reason for his outburst in class…"

"Yeah? He blew off some steam, big whoop." Klarion muttered.

"That is why I'll not be giving him a punishment."

"_What_?" Mr. Wells looked at the principle angrily. "He disrespected me-"

"Yes, Charles. But, as you have seen, this boy undergoes a lot of stress. He's a good student, and I'm sure he won't do that again." Marks said. "I'll give him a warning this time. Next time, if there is a next time, he'll get after school detention for two days? Alright?" Everyone nodded but Mr. Wells, who was red as a fire hydrant, and Bruce, who was still frozen in place.

"Can we go now? It's stuffy in here." Wren asked. Marks nodded.

"I'll have to alert the authorities of your escape…" he said to Lenore. She grinned.

"Oh, they already know. Half the high-risk patients in Arkham escaped about half an hour ago." She said. "Using paperclips…" Cato blinked, and he swore he heard Bruce make an angered noise from his seat.

"Alright then." Marks said. Cato and Wren stood and followed their parents into the hall, where they were seen by many of the student body. Bruce was left frozen in the office.

"I'll unfreeze him when I leave. I don't feel like listening to him right now." Klarion said, and the family began walking towards the entrance. Cato heard many of the boys whistle at Lenore as they passed, making him angry. Most of the other kids ran in fear from them. Why wouldn't they? His mother was a madwoman who experimented on peoples worst fears for fun….

"This is so embarrassing…" he said. Klarion laughed at this.

"Then I guess we're doing it right. Now, point to this fag, Leslie." He said. Cato shook his head.

"No-"

"There he is!" Wren yelled and pointed ahead of them. Leslie Randall was standing in the middle of the hall, staring at them all with his smug expression. Cato glared at him.

"Wow, he's a big guy." Klarion sounded unimpressed. "Whatever."

"Hey, kid." Lenore said to him when they were close. "Back off my son, or I'll give him permission to experiment on you…" she said. Randall kept his smug expression.

"Funny you should say…"

"What was that?"

"Nothing…" after that, Leslie walked off past them and down the hall to his class. Klarion watched him go.

"That kid is fucked up…" he said conclusively.

"Nicely put, Klarion. Let's go. I need to meet up with Jonathan soon."

"Doing his dirty work again?"

"Nope, just helping out. Getting some stuff from Great White tonight." She said, and looked down at Cato. "I could bring you along, if you want, Cato." She said. Cato's eyes widened.

"What?"

"You wanna go with me? You could learn some stuff about what I do." she said. Cato swallowed then nodded. Wren huffed.

"Why does _he_ get to go with you?" she pouted. Klarion patted her head.

"'Cuz you and I are gonna go out tonight." He said. Wren's face lit up like a light bulb.

"Okay!"

So, Wren would catch a movie with Klarion and Cato would accompany Lenore to an illegal dealing. He sighed, and smiled.

'At least tomorrow isn't a school night…'

…

**Author's Note: Yeah, Leslie's an odd character, isn't he. So, now you know what will appear in next chapter. Hope you enjoyed this one. Thanks for the reviews! Stay tuned! :D**


	5. Crime Business

It turned out that school would be cancelled for the rest of that day; the fact that an Arkham inmate had trespassed onto school grounds was reason enough, though Cato, and half of the student body, didn't see the big deal, since Lenore had done this a few times before. So a crazy went to a parent/teacher conference.

Big whoop.

Sadly, the parents and teachers didn't see through the same lens as the students, as worried parents hurriedly drove to the school and crammed the parking lot to pick up their children, while the faculty simply panicked. Police lined the area and Commissioner Gordon asked questions to multiple people who saw Lenore Crane. Cato was annoyed when Gordon walked up to him, and he braced himself for the onslaught of inquiries.

"It's not my fault that this happened." He said when he was finished, noticing people giving him dirty looks from afar. Gordon nodded.

"Of course not, son." He said, and chuckled. "She may be an asylum inmate, but at least Lenore Crane makes sure to stay on top of things when it comes to her kids." He said, and walked off, leaving Cato staring silently as he left.

"I guess you could say that." He muttered to himself. Just then Wren ran up and jumped onto his back, making him topple to the ground with her giggling all the way.

"Jeez, bro, you're _weak_." She said, and rolled off of him and onto the ground. He propped himself on his elbows and spat out a piece of grass.

"And you're insane." He said. Wren shrugged from where she lay and grinned.

"What can I say? It's in mah _blood_." She said. Cato was about to say something else when a shadow suddenly loomed over them. The two looked up to see what was so rudely blocking the sun and gulped.

It was Bruce, and he didn't seem happy. His armed were crossed, and he gave them a very disapproving glare. Wren managed to crack a smile.

"Heya, Uncle Bruce. Where were you?" She asked. Bruce raised a brow.

"First I was frozen by a fool. Then I was left in the office, still frozen, while you went off with your parents. Now, let's reverse that question to you." He said, and narrowed his eyes. "Where were you?"

"Chill, Uncle Bruce!" Wren raised her hands in the air. "We just walked to the entrance and they left. That's all." She said. Bruce looked her over for a moment and nodded, still seeming suspicious.

"Well, apparently school is out for the day, thanks to your mother. Let's go." He said, and walked to the car. Cato watched as people saw him and practically swooned. He scoffed.

"Amazing how having a certain amount of money can influence people's attraction." He said. Wren poked him in the cheek.

"Don't forget physical appearance, and Uncle Bruce is definitely blessed in that department." She said.

"Of course you would have noticed that." Cato said, and stood. After helping up Wren they headed for the car. On their way they saw some of the students were playing catch with a football. They seemed happy. Wren smiled at the scene, while Cato simply looked away. No point of smiling about something he cared nothing for. It was a waste of energy.

They were almost to the car when Cato heard someone say, "Look out!" He turned and watched as someone crashed into him and sent them both to the hard concrete. He hit his head, and little dots clouded his vision. The person that crashed into him landed on top of him and quickly sat themselves up.

"I got it!" they called. Some people cheered, and Cato sat up, rubbing his sore head. "Oh, my gosh! Are you okay?" the person then said.

"Oh, yes. I love when this happens." Cato mumbled and looked as his accidental-assailant. His eyes widened. It was a girl, and she was carrying the football.

"I am so sorry! Here, let me help you up." She said, and dropped the ball to help Cato stand. When he was up he dusted himself off, still looking at the girl who tackled him. She was a few inches shorter than he was. Her blonde hair was wavy, with a pixie cut, and surprisingly complimented her dark skin tone. She looked over Cato for any scratches with her large brown eyes. He only stared back at her.

She was pretty.

"I don't see anything wrong with you. That's a relief." She said, and looked up to his face. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. She raised a brow and waved her hand in front of him. "Hellooo, earth to apollo 13!" she said. Cato blinked and shook his head.

"Um, yeah. Relief. Right." He said. He heard Wren giggle from the car, and he cursed her in his head. The pretty girl held her hand out, and he hesitantly took it to shake. She smiled, and he almost feinted.

"My name is Maria Fides. Pleased to meet you, uh…" she waited for a response, and it took a moment for Cato to realize it.

"Oh! My name is Cato Bleak." He said as he retracted his hand. Maria's eyes widened.

"You're that kid all the others were saying cancelled school today." She said. Cato nodded.

"Yeah, I bet you're happy about that." He said.

"I couldn't say, really. Today was supposed to be my first day. Thanks for postponing it." She said, and smirked as she picked up the football. "Do you play?" she asked. Cato shook his head.

"No, and even if I did, I couldn't; I'm needed at home." He said, and pointed to the car. Maria looked at Bruce, and whistled low.

"You live with the richest dude in the world. Lucky." She said.

"Not right now, I'm not." Cato muttered. Maria nodded.

"Yeah, he doesn't look too happy. What happened? Did his assistant give him the wrong coffee?" she joked. Cato cracked a smile.

"No, my mother is what happened. All this," he said, gesturing to the cops and angry parents, "Is her doing."

"_Wow_, what, is your mom a terrorist or something?" Maria asked. Cato raised a brow.

"You haven't been here long, have you?" he asked. Maria shook her head.

"Moved from Metropolis a few weeks ago. Why? Is she famous around here?"

"She's a super villain bent on experimenting on people's fears and causing chaos." Cato said shortly. Maria's eyes widened to resemble saucers.

"That's…wow. So…she's like, an enemy of Batman?" she asked.

"Try the whole Justice League…" he said. She whistled again.

"That's cool, dude-"

"Cato! Let's go, bro!" Wren called. Maria looked to Wren.

"Sister?" she asked.

"Twin."

"You look nothing alike."

"The only similarity we have is our parents, which is a relief."

"Well then, I guess I'll catch you later, man. Or maybe I'll just tackle you again, either way, I'll see ya. Nice meeting you." She said, and walked off. Cato slowly made his way to the car and climbed in. Bruce started the car and pulled out of the parking lot and then the school grounds. Silence for a few moments, then a giggle from Wren.

"Cato's got a girlfriend." She said. Cato's face reddened.

"I barely know her-"

"Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy, but my family's insane, so call me maybe." Wren said, and broke into a fit of laughs. Cato socked her on the arm, but that just made her laugh harder.

"Quiet, you two. No fighting." Bruce warned.

"We aren't fighting, we're _playing_." Wren said.

"No, I feel a fight coming on…" Cato said quietly, and looked out the window. "Thank God it's Friday…"

…..

"So, no talking at all unless spoken to, got me? This is just to observe." Lenore said as she and Cato left the beat-up station wagon and walked towards a tall building that had to be nearly sixty stories. It was two-thirty the next morning, and Lenore had just snuck Cato out of the mansion to take him with her to pick up something for Scarecrow.

"Understood, mother." Cato said as they entered the building. She smirked and ruffled his hair.

"You're so formal. It's cute." She said. Inside was a lobby, and in the center was a service desk. A pretty young woman sat behind it and filed her nails. Lenore and Cato walked over to her. Poe, who was resting on Lenore's shoulder, cawed loudly. The girl looked up, then jumped to attention. Cato almost laughed.

"U-Um, can I help you?" she asked meekly. Lenore leaned onto the table.

"Yeah, we gotta pick something up from a Mr. Doe," Lenore said, and slid a small card she took from her vest over to the woman, "If you know who I mean." She said. The woman picked up the card and looked at it. Her eyes widened.

"Oh, yes. You're who he was talking about." She said, and pointed to an elevator to their far right. "When you reached the top floor, his office is behind the double doors." She said. Lenore thanked her and she and Cato proceeded to the elevator. Cato looked at the panel of numbered buttons, and gawked.

"We have to go to the top one?" he asked. This would take forever. Lenore smiled.

"Yup, these business-type crazies love the scenery. They always place pleasure over convenience, which is why they're usually caught sooner rather than later." She said. Cato cocked his head to the side.

"I'm sorry?" he asked, slightly confused. Lenore looked at him.

"Someone at the top floor of a building like this would have to take the elevator as the quickest way out if they are lacking air support, and Batman would easily catch up to a descending elevator." She said.

"How?"

"He'd fall on it." She said simply, like it's happened before. Cato nodded. "That's why Jonathan and I like a place less, ah, extravagant than this. We like small places that are secluded and have a lot of escape routes. Not stuff like this." She explained.

"That's why Dr. Crane likes farm areas?" Cato asked. Lenore nodded.

"It's not just to emphasis the fact that he's the Scarecrow; it's _convenient_. A cornfield has saved that Straw-Man more than once, believe it or not." She said. Poe flapped her wings in agreement.

"It's weird, how I'm learning more on an elevator ride than I have in the past few weeks at school." Cato said.

"It's your fault for being a _freakin'_ genius." Lenore said in amusement. Cato smiled.

"Actually, mother, I think it's _your_ fault. Weren't you valedictorian at the academy?" he asked.

"True, true." Lenore said. The elevator stopped and opened to reveal a short hallway leading to a door at the end, which lead them to a lounge area. Cato was impressed with the décor.

"So this isn't convenient. Dually noted." He muttered. Lenore smiled at him and placed a finger over her lips. He nodded. It was time to be quiet. They walked forward, searching for the double doors the woman was talking about. As they looked, Cato saw a young woman with white hair ascending some carpeted stairs. She was soaked, and wrapped in a black-and-white striped towel. He tapped Lenore on the arm and pointed to her before she disappeared. Lenore frowned at her, then looked to Cato and shrugged. She had no idea who she was.

"Ah, there they are. How did we miss that?" she said a few seconds later. They walked towards to the double doors. Cato looked down and saw water droplets as they made their way to it, and figured the woman had come from there.

Lenore opened the door and they walked into a large office area. Cato was surprised to see a pool in the center of the room. He was even more surprised to see that a shark was swimming around inside of it.

'The pool explains why the woman was soaked, but why would she swim with a shark?' he thought. She must have been crazy, too.

"See what I mean?" Lenore mumbled, and they walked over to the large desk that was placed in front of an enormous window that served as the back wall. They sat in the chairs placed in front of it and waited. Cato looked over to see if there was anything else strange in the room.

He regretfully found it.

Cato clapped his hand over his mouth and grabbed Lenore's arm. She looked at him questioningly, then saw what he was panicking about.

The dead body of a man was lying there. There was two small holes in his forehead, and a small pool of blood was formed around it. She patted his head.

"Calm down, calm down. He probably deserved it." She said quietly. Cato nodded, but kept staring. He had never seen a dead body before, and now one was lying right in front of him. Lenore sighed. "I'm a terrible mother." She mumbled as she kept stroking his hair. Poe cawed. "I'm not the worst mother in the world, you dumb bird." Lenore replied. Cato wished he had brought Archimedes with him.

"Holy crap, lady! Ya scared me!" came a voice from the entrance. Cato kept his eyes on the body.

"Yeah, sorry 'bout that. Where's Warren?" Lenore called.

"Ah, he took a little swim earlier, so he's gone to change. I'll go get 'im."

"He swam with that shark? I won't even ask if he's crazy…" Lenore joked as the guy left. Cato didn't laugh. He couldn't stop thinking about the body. Lenore frowned. "Let's get rid of that, shall we?" she said, and snapped her fingers. Suddenly the body was gone, and Cato saw only floor tiles where it had been. He blinked, then relaxed.

"That was creepy." He muttered, still gripping Lenore's arm.

"You see a lot of that in my business, hun. Just know that." She said. He nodded.

"Miss Crane!" a new voice said. Cato and Lenore looked over to see who it was.

His eyes nearly popped out of his skull.

It was a man, he was sure of it, but his lips, nose and ears were missing. He was bald, and his skin was paper white. All of his teeth were filed to points, and Cato thought he looked like a shark.

'Great White Shark.' He said, and he settled down, placing himself in a business-like manner. He wouldn't embarrass his mother.

"What's up, Warren? Looking good, for a guy that just swam with a carnivorous fish." Lenore said. White nodded and sat at his desk.

"It's a bit more complicated than that, I'm afraid." He said, and his mouth curved upwards at the corners. He was smiling. "What's with the kid?" he asked, looking to Cato.

"Haven't you heard? It's bring your munchkin to work day, of course." Lenore said. Cato smiled politely, then looked to White's suit. Armani. Nice.

"So he's interested in the crime business, hm?" White asked, still looking at Cato.

"I dunno, he just wanted to come." She said. White nodded.

"Well, if you do join Gotham's underbelly, give me a call." He said to Cato, then turned back to Lenore. "Did you get rid of the body?" he asked, pointing to where the corpse was previously. Lenore nodded.

"You're welcome. Kid's not used to that kinda stuff yet." She said.

"Understandable. Now, on to business." White said, and pulled a sheet of paper from one of his desk drawers. He handed it to Lenore. "This is what your father paid for." He said.

"Great…" she muttered, then handed the paper to Cato. He took it and read it. It was a receipt, and the item purchased was-

"A bunch of chemicals." He said. He read the list of them in his head, and faintly remembered seeing these listed in chemistry class. "Huh." He wondered if these were used to create his toxin.

"Must be making a big batch this time." White said. "Doing something fun, are we?"

"I dunno. He just sent me to pick it up. Where is it all?" she asked.

"Behind the building. Jerry will be waiting for you with the crates."

"How many?"

"Two."

"That's good, 'cause we came here in a damned station wagon."

"Can't you use your voodoo on the crates and just fly 'em to your old man's place?"

"The bat has his eyes all over the place, even in the air. He's spot us immediately."

"Understood. Well, then, I guess this is goodbye for now." White said, and he and Lenore shook hands.

"Oh, yeah. Who's the cutie with the white hair?" Lenore asked. White sighed.

"A freaking annoying lady who's the reason I went for a swim earlier. She fell in, and she can't swim, apparently." He said. Lenore smirked.

"Girlfriend or hostage."

"Hostage. My patience is wearing thin with her, I swear." He said. Lenore shrugged.

"I wouldn't know. All me and Jonathan's hostages were tied to chairs, not given a room to stay in, which I believe you did, correct?"

"Yes, well, she has information I need, and I'll do whatever is necessary to make her more cooperative." He said. Lenore tsked.

"You business types negotiate too much. Just assert your dominance. That's all that's needed. Works every time. See you around, Sharky." She said, and she and Cato walked to the double doors and left.

….

Nearly two hours later, Cato was standing outside a small building in the Narrows. The building was two stories, and run-down. Graffiti covered the walls of it, and the door was kicked in.

"_This_ is convenient." Lenore said as she opened the back of the station wagon. She waved her hand at the crates and they began to levitate. She walked around to the back of the building with Cato where they saw the entrance to a cellar. "After you, kiddo." She said. Cato nodded and opened the corroded doors. He walked down the metal steps until he met a dirt floor. He looked around. The room was dimly lit, the only lights coming from a work area where different test tubes and papers were placed on old tables. Cato saw a scythe leaning against the wall next to it. He quickly looked around for Jonathan.

A scream answered his question.

He looked to his left to another very dimly lit area. He saw an old man in nice clothes strapped to a chair. His wrinkled face was etched with terror, and his screams continued through the room. Cato furrowed his brow; where was Jonathan.

"You can't stand dead bodies, but you can watch someone be tortured with no problem. Weird." Lenore said as she entered. She carefully set the crates near the work area and walked over. "Hey, old man." She said boredly when the screaming subsided for a moment. Cato looked up at her, then followed her gaze to the darkest corner in the room.

"Hello, children." Said a quiet voice from the darkness.

"How did you see him?" Cato asked.

"I can see through the dark with no problem. You can't?" she asked, bewildered. Cato shook his head, suddenly feeling ridiculous. He couldn't even see in the dark, his powers were s weak. Lenore squeezed his shoulder lightly. "It's all good. They'll kick in soon enough." She said, then walked over to the subject, who had passed out. He kept muttering things in his sleep.

"Charles Hubert. The sixteenth patient to use my new formula. He has a dreadful fear of drowning." Jonathan's voice said from the corner.

"Isn't this the head doctor guy at Gotham General?" Lenore asked.

"Yes, apparently he's been accepting bribes from certain people to give them prescription medicine they don't require. One doctor found out and they thought the act was completely unethical, so they contacted me to teach Dr. Hubert a lesson in medicine." He said, and chuckled. "They paid me quite handsomely, and I used the money to gain more chemicals."

"Who was it? Do you know?" Lenore asked. Jonathan walked away from the corner and into the light. He was wearing his mask and tattered suit, and was looking down at a clipboard, taking notes.

"What does it matter? Scarecrow killed him after he gave me the money." He said. Lenore raised a brow.

"Really?" she said. Jonathan looked up from the board to her.

"**I don't much like snitches, kid. We told you that they don't last long in life. Asshole's getting what he paid for, and got what he deserved. Two-for-one. Should have made him pay more…"** Scarecrow said.

"You're cheerful as always, Scary." Lenore said.

"Isn't he always..." Jonathan said, and took off the mask. He walked over to the crates and inspected them. "Nice work, Lenore. You didn't have any troubles, did you?"

"Nope. No bumps in the road, and no bat on the trail. It's all good." She patted Cato on the back. "Jr. here helped me out, too." She said. Jonathan looked over his glasses to Cato.

"You interested in our business, boy?" he asked. Cato furrowed his brow; why was everyone asking him that?

"No, he just wanted to come along and see what I do when I'm not shouting at a psychiatrist." She said. Jonathan nodded.

"A good learning experience. He'll know a lot more about Gotham's goings on than most of the city when he graduates."

"Don't you worry that someone might replicate your formula when you order the chemicals through them?" Cato asked suddenly. Jonathan smirked.

"Good question. I don't allow all of my chemicals to be purchased by the same person. I buy some from one dealer, and others from other dealers. Never all from one area. This is only an eighth of what is necessary." He said. "My hired help is getting the rest. It's a hassle, to say the least, but it's necessary if I would like to keep my formula from copy-cat killers or crazed fans."

"_Fans_?" Cato asked. Jonathan nodded as he took a syringe from his desk.

"Your mother would know all about that. She practically screamed at me when they started following her around."

"Because she's your daughter…" Cato guessed. Jonathan shook his head.

"No, because I kidnapped her and she survived my experiment. I didn't know she was my daughter then. She was just some girl named Dorothy, uh, what was it?"

"Dorothy Osmond." Lenore said. Cato blinked.

"Wait, you didn't know she was your daughter?" he asked. He was stumped. Jonathan looked over to him, then to Lenore.

"You didn't tell him, _did_ you?" he asked. Lenore shook her head and shrugged.

"Never came up."

"Well," Jonathan looked back to Cato, "It will sure be one hell of a bedtime story, I'll tell you that much." He said. Cato nodded.

'So he didn't know she was his kid when she was younger…' he looked up to his mother. He then realized the only bit of her childhood he knew about came through the photo album Jonathan gave him.

He didn't know _anything_, really.

How she met the rogues.

How she befriended Killer Croc.

_Hell_, he barely knew how she and his father even _met_.

He was _clueless_, and he felt terrible.

"You _will_ tell me, right? About your childhood?" he asked. Lenore looked down to him and smiled.

"I'll tell you everything I remember…" she said, a look of sadness appearing on her beautiful face. Cato narrowed his eyes.

What did his mother go through?

…

When they were finally back home, Lenore took Cato to his room. Archimedes was asleep in a basket of cloth, and Poe flew to the dresser. Cato sat on his bed and Lenore leaned over and kissed his forehead.

"You did good tonight, kiddo."

"I didn't do anything, really." He said. "I just watched."

"Trust me; _just watching_ can be a chore. I would know." She said, and leaned close to him. "I messed up my first outing with my dad, and spilled toxin _everywhere_." She said. Cato's eyes widened.

"Are you serious?" he asked. She sat next to him and made a swiping motion in the air.

"Tripped right over while carrying some toxin to him. We had nightmares for weeks, not to mention we wouldn't talk to each other for like a month after that." She said, smiling wide. Cato imagined the scene, and smiled to.

"Must have been terrible. You probably wanted to block that out of your mind afterward" He said. Lenore's smiled faltered a bit after that.

"No. Not at all. All memories, even the most terrible, are still precious to me, and many others. They make us who we are, and help us when we need to make a decision. It's what happened in the past that influences our actions in the future. Never take your memory for granted, Cato." She said. She seemed sad again. Cato frowned.

"Mother, what happened that makes you so sad when you think about it?" he asked. Lenore looked to him in mild surprise.

"A lot of things." She said.

"Can you tell me about them, at least a little bit? Here." He got up and went over to his bookshelf. From it, he took the photo album and went back to the bed. When he was seated, he opened it to a random page and pointed to a little girl standing next to Lenore in a picture. Both were smiling wide, and eating melting icecream.

"Where did you get this?" Lenore asked.

"Jonathan. Who is the girl?" he asked, pointing to the little girl. Lenore smiled sadly.

"Susan. I haven't thought about her in a while…" she said. Cato huffed.

"You see? You're sad, and I want to know why that is. Can I get at least the beginning parts?" he asked eagerly. Lenore looked him over for a moment before sighing and standing up.

"Alright, get under the covers, and I'll tell you the awesomely tragic tale of me." She said. Cato got under the covers and she sat next to him and leaned against the wall. "Where do I start…" she muttered.

"The beginning." Cato answered. Lenore looked to him and smirked.

"Hun, It's a whole hell of a lot more complex than _that_…"

…

**Author's Note: READ THIS. I have finally gotten my deviantart page up and running, yo! I only have two pics up so far, but yeah, there's gonna be more. DUH. Anyway, I'm taking requests, so if you wanna see a particular scene from any of my fanfics or even YOURS just let me know and I'll get right on it. (If it's a pic from your fanfic please be descriptive) You can leave requests in a private message or in a review. Your choice. The hyperlink is on my profile page, since it won't go on the chapter. **

**If you can't find it on my profile, go to google and type 'Raven-Lenore-Robins on deviantart' ;P**

**Thanks much for the reviews. Stay tuned! **


	6. Friend Or Foe?

**Author's Note: Yo! Just got back. Needed to seriously rewrite some stuff for this story, sorry about the wait. But, Holy Shit! I come back here and see all the fun little updates that FanFiction has done while I was away. At first I was like, "YAY, BITCHES!" But then I heard that the M-rating is being wiped out or something! I was like, "What fuck-tard made this happen!" Sorry about the language, but that's how I feel! Now people gotta send it to this AdultFanFiction, and I'm like, NO. That's stupid. Idiotic. Imbecilic. BLARGH! **

**M-Rating on here is for the especially detailed stuff. It's the place where you get the ULTIMATE detail in gore, action, and romance. I mean COME ON! I don't want to have to go to a whole different site (which I visited, and it SUCKS) to see the goodies. T-Rated stuff like mine is good and all, and some great stuff happens, but what if people want to go a step further than that? The M-Rating is made for the people to have absolutely no limits to their written works. I like the excessive amount of gore that makes my stomach churn just reading it. And yes, I like to read some smut stuff once in a while. Who doesn't? You typically don't find that in T-Rating and under. It's ridiculous that they're doing this "cleansing". I feel like a tantrum child, ready to kill anything. I tried signing this petition thing one of you sent me, but it wouldn't allow me, so I apologize for that.**

**Now, I'm gonna T-rate my "Perfectly Corrupted" story so it's not totally killed by the butt-faces. I'll just dumb down the stuff a little so I don't get in trouble, though I shouldn't HAVE to do ANY of that...GRRRRR...**

**www . change petitions/fan fiction-net-stop-the-destruction-of-fanfiction-net**

**Take out the spaces in the link and sign the petition if it's still open. I couldn't, because my computer sucks.**

**If I'm talking out of my hat, then just ignore me. This might be all done with, idk. I've been gone for a while.**

**Just my thoughts. And now, the chapter. Hope you enjoy. **

...

When Cato had finally fallen asleep, Lenore stood up and pulled the covers up to the boy's chin. She had of course not told him of Batman's identity as Bruce Wayne, making her have to alter the story of her life a bit. She remembered the different expressions he showed as she told the tale, and smiled.

"Sorry for the nightmares, kiddo." She whispered, and walked to the window and opened it to fly out. Poe flew out ahead of her as Lenore cast Cato one more loving look. Then she was gone into the night.

…

Cato woke up that Saturday afternoon from a nightmare. He dreamed he was strapped down to an operating table and a strange man was looming over him, grinning like a fool and holding a scalpel in his hand. Cato had woken up just as the man placed the scalpel on his forehead, ready to cut his head open and take his memories.

He sat up and rubbed his eyes. Archimedes rested in a pile on his lap.

'_You're awake. That's a relief. I thought you were comatose, boy.'_ She said. Cato nodded.

"Mother told me about her childhood last night, Archimedes." He said. The cobra raised her head and looked right at him.

'_And?'_

"I understand her position a lot more, and I also feel terrible."

'_Why do you feel so bad?'_

"Because, here I am, thinking my childhood couldn't really get much worse at times." He shivered. "Now I know that it can get _much_. _Worse_…" he said. Archimedes nodded.

'_You can learn much from hearing about the suffering of others.'_

"Yes, that's true. Father brought mother back to life when she died, and he gave her a piece of his soul." He said, and placed his hand over his heart. "I wonder if it _hurt_, tearing his soul in two…"

'_I wouldn't know. Why don't you ask him yourself?'_

"He's not here."

'_He's in your sisters room.'_

Cato jumped off of the bed.

"What?"

'_He's in your sister's room, passed out.'_ Archimedes said.

"How do you know?"

'_Teekl told me.'_ She said, and slithered to his window to sunbathe. _'Why don't you go say hello?'_

Cato walked quickly to the door and exited his room. When he reached his sister's door, he stopped and listened. He heard snoring coming from two different people. He sighed and let himself in. Sure enough, Klarion was passed out on Wren's bed, with Wren also sleeping, her head resting on his chest. They looked peaceful.

Cato closed the door quietly behind him and walked to Wren's desk, which was covered in candy and-

"A stop sign? Wren, you idiot…." Cato muttered, and smiled. He noticed a her history book resting at the edge. He picked it up, then dropped it to the floor. The loud 'thud' it made caused Wren and Klarion to jump awake. Wren sat bolt-right up, her eyes wide. Klarion kept laying there, and rubbed his eyes.

"I thought you were Uncle Bruce…" Wren said, and she sighed with relief. After that she looked angrily to Cato. "Have you any idea what time it is?" she asked. Cato raised a brow.

"Twelve forty-six." He said.

"Yup, too early for you to be barging in and waking me up." She said, and crossed her arms.

"I take it you were out late last night." Cato said, and picked up the stop sign. "How were the '_movies'_?" he asked. Wren smiled sheepishly.

"Fine."

"Sure."

Klarion sat up and looked around.

"Where the hell am I?" he asked groggily, his eyes still mostly closed.

"My room, daddy." Wren said. Klarion looked over at her.

"So it seems. Why am I up?"

"Cato woke us up." Wren said. Klarion looked around until his gaze finally landed on Cato.

"You bastard." He mumbled. Cato smirked and shrugged.

"The early bird catches the worm." He said. Klarion frowned.

"But I'm not a bird, and it sure as hell isn't _early_…"

"Well, it looks like you'll be getting nothing, then." Cato said. Teekl walked in and mewed at him with approval; she liked that he shared a similar mindset as her.

"Yeah, yeah…" Klarion muttered, and looked down. "Where is my jacket?" he asked. He was only wearing his white button-up shirt. Wren shrugged.

"I dunno." She said, and looked around. "There it is, under the candy." She said, pointing to the desk.

"Bring it to me, Cato." Klarion said, and stretched. Cato picked up the long jacket, dropping pieces of candy onto the floor as he did so, and brought it to his father. "Thanks kid." Klarion said, and straightened his tie before putting on the jacket.

'_You should ask him now. You may not get another chance for a while.'_ Archimedes said in Cato's mind. He nodded, and cleared his throat.

"Um, so, mother told me about her childhood last night." He said. Klarion froze for just a moment before returning to adjusting his jacket.

"And?" he asked.

"She told me about how you split your soul and gave it to her, to bring her back…" he said. Klarion was awake now, and he looked up to Cato.

"Yeah?"

"I was wondering if it hurt." Cato said. Klarion brought his finger to his chin.

"You know, I don't really remember that. I was tired for days afterward, I know that. That level of necromancy can drain even the best of sorcerers. It would _kill_ a novice. Why do you need to know?" he asked. Cato shrugged.

"I was only wondering." He said. Klarion nodded. "Does it feel weird, having only half a soul?" he asked. Klarion snorted.

"I did not give _half_ of my soul. I only gave a piece of it to her when I retrieved her soul. Her soul was incomplete, so I had to do that. That's how she has her powers. I'm still surprised that she's _that_ powerful for a human." He said. "She can cause some damage."

"Isn't she a Witch Woman, though? She has everything that's necessary to be one, doesn't she?" Cato asked.

"Not quite, she still has human blood, however little is left. As time goes by, her blood will turn to that of a Witch Person's, and then she'll be a full Witch Woman." He said.

"Do you know when that will be?" Cato asked. Klarion nodded.

"When her father dies. When he's dead, she won't have any full-human relatives, and she'll be completely changed, physically, to fit." Klarion said. Cato nodded.

"Magic is complicated." He said.

"But it's fun. That's why I endured all those damned spell-books and what-not." He said. "The only subject I truly studied." He said, and yawned. "I'm too tired to be talking about stuff like this.." he said, and stood. He looked to Wren, who had fallen back to sleep.

"She'll be sleeping all day, won't she?" Cato asked. Klarion nodded.

"Both of us. We had fun." He said, and picked Teekl up. "You should come with us next time."

"I'll think about it." Cato said, and waved as his father disappeared.

"Get those Milk Duds away from me…" Wren mumbled in her sleep. Cato sighed and left her room and headed back to his to change his clothes.

…..

"You two seem tired." Bruce said to them when he walked into the living room. Cato and Wren sat on the couch, dozing. Cato looked over to Bruce and nodded.

"Yes, it seems so." He said. He knew Bruce wasn't an idiot, and that he most likely suspected that they had snuck out from the house. Bruce raised a brow at them, but continued to the door. Cato watched him. "Where are you going?" he asked quietly.

"Some troubles at work. I'll be back in a few hours." He said, and walked out. Cato waited until the door was closed to turn back to the television.

"He's lying…" Wren said. Cato looked at her.

"What?" he asked. She sighed.

"Whenever he really has to go to work, he makes sure to bring his suitcase, his cellphone, and a thermos of coffee on the road. He didn't bring any of those things. He's not going to work." She explained. "He's probably getting away from us for a while, so he can cool down."

"I never knew you were that observant." He said. Wren shrugged, and kept her eyes on the television.

"It's whatever."

…

When Monday finally rolled around, everything at the school was back to normal, as always.

"Next time, let's get this place shut down for good." Wren said as they sat down at their lunch table. Cato chuckled as he opened his container of salad.

"And how would we accomplish that?" he asked. Wren shrugged.

"We could blow it up." She said, and grinned. Cato nearly smiled as well, bit remembered something his mother had told him when she told him about her childhood. Instead, he shivered.

"Let's think of something that doesn't involve explosives." He said warily. Wren took a bite of her chicken tender.

"We could burn it down." She suggested.

"…Not that, either…"

"Jeez, you're being picky…" Wren said, hooding her eyes at him.

"It's just, mother told me about-"

"About her childhood, yeah, and she's not fond of big booms and fires. I know." she said. Cato frowned.

"How do you know that?"

"When we were in the womb, I practically lived in her mind. I know a lot about her that she allowed me to know. There's some stuff that's locked tight, and I wasn't able to look through." Wren explained. Cato nodded, feeling bitter; he hated that his mother and sister shared such a connection, but knew it was his fault anyway. He had placed that barrier around himself in fear, and he regretted it.

"So...if you know all of this, then why do you suggest we commit those acts?" he asked. Wren looked at him, and shook her head.

"Just a joke, bro. Didn't mean anything by it."

"Oh..."

"Jeez, you're smart and all, but your still pretty stupid sometimes." she said with a smile. Cato smirked.

"Yes, well-"

"Hello." Cato and Wren looked up to see Marie Fides standing there, a boxed lunch in her hand. She pointed to the seat next to Cato. "Would it be alright if I sat there?" she asked.

"Bwuh..." Cato said. Wren snorted and nodded for Maria to sit down.

"Yeah. Sure. Just watch out; his 'stupid' is contagious." she teased. Cato shook his head and glowered at his sister.

"Thanks a lot." Maria said, and sat down. She opened her lunch to reveal a simple salad, with a packet of ranch dressing on the side. Wren smiled.

"Don't like the school food?" she asked. Maria shook her head.

"No way, man. Most of that stuff isn't even considered edible by doctors. I'm not touching it." she said. Wren grinned at this, and giggled.

"Funny, Cato thinks the same exact way!" she said. Cato shot a look at his sister.

"Nothing wrong with wanting to remain healthy, sister."

"Meh. Excuse me while I destroy my immune system or whatever, _brother_." Wren said, and took a bite from her school provided spaghetti. Maria laughed as she spread the ranch on her salad.

"I can tell you're related just by your bickering." she said.

"This is nothing." Cato said. She looked from Wren to Cato.

"I wouldn't be surprised. So, why don't you eat school food? Same reason?" she asked.

"Yes. Mother likes to joke that some of the contents found in the school food are used to aid in the creation of my grandfather's fear toxin." he said with a small smile. Maria cocked her head to the side.

"What does your grandpa do?" she asked. Wren almost spat her food all over the table, but managed to swallow it.

"What the hell?" she asked in surprise. "What, do you live under a freaking _rock_?" Maria blushed slightly, and Cato couldn't help thinking it looked nice on her dark skin.

"Sh-she's from Metropolis, Wren." he said. "She just moved here, and doesn't now much about our sort." he explained. Wren took a deep breath and her smile returned.

"Oh, thank God. I thought you were a 'tard or something." she said.

"So...who's your grandpa? Another villain?" Maria asked, her eyes wide. Cato nodded.

"Dr. Jonathan Crane, a.k.a., The Scarecrow." he said. Maria nodded.

"I heard a little about him on the news." she said.

"Most likely." Cato said, and took a bite from his salad.

"Jeez. You guys must be popular, being the kids of all these criminals." she said. Cato chuckled darkly.

"Popular, yes, but not exactly in a good way." he said. Wren smacked the table angrily. \

"Hey, I got plenty of friends who don't care about my background. You're just not popular because you're a tight-ass." she leaned in close to Maria and jabbed her thumb at Cato as she continued. "He gets uptight if you say our last name wrong." Maria nodded.

"I don't mind a few simple mistakes, but deliberately saying my name incorrectly for an entire year will make me angry." Cato said.

"What's your last name?" Maria asked.

"Bleak or Crane. We're fine with those. But Cato gets grumpy when anyone calls us Wayne." Wren said.

"Hm. So, was your mom married and divorced, or something?" Maria asked. Cato shook his head.

"No, she's married, but not in the legal sense." he said.

"It's kind of hard to legally marry someone who technically doesn't exist in this plain." Wren said.

"Yeah...sure..." Maria said. Wren rolled her eyes.

"Our dad is Klarion Bleak. You probably wouldn't know him. Neither does most of the world, so don't feel bad."

"Most people just think that the guy our mother is seen with sometimes is her emo boyfriend." Cato said with a small smile.

"I'm trying to follow, man, but let me tell you...it's getting hard." Maria said. "Is your dad her boyfriend or her husband?"

"Husband."

"Is he a normal guy or-"

"Bad guy." Wren and Cato said in unison.

"So, you're just a whole family of bad guys."

"Yes." again, this was said in unison.

"Are you bad guys?" Maria asked.

Silence.

Cato and Wren looked at each other quizzically.

"Uh, I'm not. Are you?" Cato asked. Wren shrugged.

"I've blown up a few fire hydrants before, and stole candy, but that's about it." she said. "I wouldn't put myself in mom or dad's league."

"Are people afraid of you or something?" Maria asked. Cato and Wren snorted.

"No, no. If they are, they're doing a fine job hiding it." Cato said.

"Besides, we're just normal kids." Wren said. "And in the end, our parents are normal, to. Just a tad bit on the eccentric side of life." she finished. Cato and Wren didn't dare mention that they possessed magical abilities. If the student body, and the world, knew about that, it would become the Salem Witch Trials all over again. Human beings were too far into the science world to really embrace the fact that magic existed. There was, of course, science behind magic, and everything Cato, Wren, Lenore, and Klarion were able to accomplish. Things didn't just appear out of nowhere when they snapped their fingers. That was impossible. Crossing of dimensions, and the manipulation of molecules and atoms was all in the mix when performing sorcery. Even with necromancy, the harboring of souls was simply an act of pulling one's soul back from the next dimension. As for the person's ability to perform these acts, Cato could only blame genetics. His father was from a completely different dimension, where magic was not considered uncommon. It was the inhabitant's main form of 'science'. Or so he heard; he'd never been to Limbo, and from what his father had informed, he decided that he really never wanted to go in the first place.

The world of course knew that sorcery was performed by some heroes and villains alike, and they lived with that so long as the scales were even, or the scales favored the hero's side. But, if they found out about their entire family of majickers, it would indeed cause a pandemonium that Klarion for once wouldn't want to be a part of. So, they kept it secret, even though most people already knew about Lenore having something strange about her. Luckily, they never ruled her odd abilities out to be complete witchcraft. Just gadgets that she may have created. If they did find Lenore to be a an actual witch, her escapes from Arkham would become much more difficult to accomplish, and Cato and Wren would be placed under great suspicion. Cato was thankful that Mr. Wayne and the inmates that Lenore associated herself with kept everything hush-hush...

"Well, it's still cool." Maria said.

"Totally." Wren said, and stood up to take up her tray. "I'll be back."

"Don't get lost." Cato called after her. Wren stuck her tongue at him and skipped away, her skirt flipping upward. Cato noticed boys eyeing her as she went, and he slammed his fist on the table. They looked warily at him, then back to their food. He rested his head on the table and sighed. "I'm doomed."

"Yeah, you are. Even I was checking her out." Maria said.

"Please don't say that. I already have trouble dealing with one gender hounding after my sister. I don't know what I'd do if I accepted the fact that both sexes were after her." he said weakly.

"Overprotective, much? Or are you afraid of losing your security blanket?" Maria asked. Cato sat up, and eyed her.

"What?"

"From what I've seen, you go everywhere with her, following close behind. I don't want to sound like a stalker, but it's hard to not notice you two with people giving you a five foot radius all the time in the halls." she said. "Normal kids usually hate their siblings, and keep away from each other at school, but you two are like this." Maria crossed her fingers. Cato frowned.

"Yes, well, we're all we have family-wise. We need to be together, or we would fall apart at the seams." Cato said, and turned to his meal. "Only once did Wren go to a slumber party, and she demanded to come back home after a few hours of being there. As soon as she came home, she set up her sleeping bag in my room and slept there. Ridiculous, but true. We need each other, because no one else understands our situation, you see?"

"I'm sorry if I offended you."

"Think nothing of it. I find your inquiries interesting and intelligent." Cato said. Maria snorted and covered her mouth to stop from laughing. Cato raised a brow in question. She shook her head and waved her free hand.

"Sorry, it's just your last sentence. You sounded like that Pippi chick from Mr. Poppers Penguins."

"Mr. Popper's Penguins..."

"I know, it's dumb. Sorry." Maria stopped her giggles, but kept smiling.

"You're an interesting person, Miss Fides..." Cato said, and placed his lunchbox back into his backpack.

"As are you, _Mr. Bleak. _I gotta get going. Chemistry is next and we're doing a project. I want to get first dibs on the good equipment. I'll see you later, man." She said, and stood. Cato waved to her and she left.

"Aw, what'd you do to scare her off?" Wren asked as she returned. Cato looked at her.

"Simply needed to get to chemistry. And you did get lost after all, since it took you that long to take up your tray..."

"Nope, just giving the love birds time to get to know each other." Wren waggled her eyebrows and grinned at her brother.

"You are such an-"

"-Awesome and loving big sister who sometimes doesn't understand her nerd-ball brother." Wren finished. Cato leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, giving Wren one of his disapproving looks.

"You are so much like father." he said. Wren looked at her brother suspiciously. When he smiled, she relaxed.

"Okay, so you mean that in a good way." She said. He nodded.

"Of course."

"Well, back on the subject of Maria Fides. At least you got a friend." Wren said happily.

"Acquaintance, is more like it." Cato said. Wren shrugged.

"Friend, acquaintance, it's all the same to me."

"That's because you go by the 'friend or foe' rule."

"And it's a good rule. Always best to know your allies from your enemies. And she seems like an ally so far."

"So far?"

"You never know what could be hiding behind a friendly smile, Cato. That's what mom always said to us."

"Yes, well, mother has reason to be suspicious of the people around her."

"And we don't?" Wren asked, and the bell ringing was her response. The twins stood and walked to the doors.

"So, are you telling me to be suspicious of this girl that you are trying to make be buddy-buddy with?" Cato asked as they made their way easily through the otherwise crowded hallway.

"I felt something odd about her, that's all." Wren said.

"Felt?" Cato asked. Wren wiggled her fingers in the air to point out that she used magic. Cato nodded. "I see."

"It might be nothing. She might just be weird, and that's the most probable thing, since she actually sat with us. No one does that."

"Yes, she _is_ interesting."

"Just keep an eye on her for a while. That's all." Wren said. Cato nodded. When it came to this sort of thing, the twins kept serious. Enemies of their parents were enemies of them, and for right now, they didn't know hardly anything about this girl.

Friend or foe; that was yet to be determined for Marie Fides.

...

**Author's Note: And that's that chapter. Sorry it was a bit dull. I needed to type something up quick when I got back, and I was still a little pissed off. Thanks for the reviews! Luv ya guys! Stay tuned.**


	7. Frosty Accusations

Some weeks passed, and the twins grew to know a little more about Maria Fides as time went on. She had recently moved from Metropolis with her single father. The reason was he found better work here in Gotham in one of the Wayne company buildings. They had also hoped to wander away from the cape and villain business, but were quickly disappointed when they reached the city...

"She just jumped right into our cab and started chatting with us while pointing a gun at the driver..." Maria said.

"Yeah, Harley's like that." Wren said with a smile. "Don't worry, she typically doesn't kill people who have kids with them. One of her moral codes or whatever."

"Right..."

They were walking to class, Cato keeping silent next to them as they moved. It was the final class of the day, and all he could really think of was getting out of his blasted uniform. He stared hard at the white, scuffed tiles of the hallway, thinking of nothing important, just fleeting thoughts that crossed his mind.

"You're quiet, Cato." Wren said, and he looked up at her.

"Yes, well-" he stopped when he noticed Maria wasn't there anymore. "Where did she go?" he asked.

"She left for class like two minutes ago. Keep your mind safe here on Earth, will you?" Wren said. Cato nodded once and went back to staring at the tiles.

...

"So much better." Cato said when he walked out of the bathroom, new clothes on and his uniform in a ball in his hand.

"For an emo..." Wren muttered.

"I've told you many times before I am not emo."

"Denial..." Wren cast a disapproving eye at Cato's clothes and wrinkled her nose. A black tee-shirt and grey cargo pants. She hated it. Cato rolled his eyes and then stuffed his uniform in his backpack uncaringly. A surprised whimper came from Wren, and he smirked.

"I swear, the reasons for your infatuation with clothing will always evade me." he said.

"They're cute." she pouted.

"They're uncomfortable."

"Whatever, whiner. We need to go. I'm almost late." she said, and the walked quickly to the auditorium.

...

Cato's eyes were becoming heavy as he watched the dancers on the stage. The damned piano music was he culprit behind it all. The number was too slow. Too quiet. He began to close his eyes, and he leaned back.

THUMP

The number stopped and Cato's eyes shot open. He sat up and looked at the stage. Darla was on the floor, her hair askew and her face red. The other girls were around her, some looking worried, and the others looking amused. Wren was among the worried ones, and she reached a hand out to help Darla up. The young blonde wrinkled her nose at Wren's hand and slapped it away. Wren frowned, and quietly said something Cato couldn't hear. Some girls around Wren nodded in apparent agreement to her words, and Cato saw Darla's red face darken. She stood, and tucked her tousled hair behind her ear.

"It was your fault anyway!" she yelled, pointing an accusing finger at Wren, who cocked her head in confusion.

"But I was an entire stage away from you, all the way over there, Darla." she said, pointing to the other end of the stage. The girls nodded, and Darla snarled.

"You know you did it!" she yelled. Wren shook her head.

"How is that at all possible?" she asked.

"You used your weird voodoo crap on me! And I bet you use it to make you dance better than the rest of us!" she said. Wren froze for just a moment, but quickly regained her composure. She smiled, and raised a brow in amusement.

"Really Darla, don't you think that's a bit outlandish, even for someone like me?" she asked. The other girls snickered and giggled.

"Your stupid mother is a witch! Who can say if it isn't hereditary?" Darla said. Wren's amused expression fell just a bit, and the girls stopped their giggling. Cato frowned, and he felt his hands clench into fists. Around him his seat began to frost over.

"Honestly Darla." Wren began. "You really believe those silly rumors? I thought you were smarter than that." Darla narrowed her brown eyes.

"I've seen the crap your mother is capable of-"

"And yet you stand here accusing her of things she doesn't do? Not smart at all..." Wren said quietly. Cato leaned closer so he could hear.

"I-is that a threat, Crane?" Darla asked. Wren shook her head.

"Just an observation." she replied. Cato smirked; their mother always said to use that line. Wren kept her expression firm, and she didn't move once while Darla stared and huffed at her. Finally, Darla turned away.

"I wouldn't want to get too close to you, for fear of being hexed or some crap. Besides, it's suddenly getting cold. I wonder why that is?" she muttered accusingly, and walked off to the changing rooms. The instructor, Hilda, who had been watching the entire scene boredly, called for attention from the girls. Cato leaned back again in his seat and eyed the girls as they seemed to keep just a little farther away from Wren than usual. His eyes narrowed in annoyance.

"Idiot girls and their superstitions..." he muttered.

"It's not like their suspicions are wrong."

Cato didn't even turn his head at the new voice.

"What are you doing here, father?" he asked. Klarion sat down next to him and clasped his hands behind his head.

"Admiring the performance." he said casually. Cato sighed at the lie, and kept hs anger pushed down.

"_Father._.."

"Oh, alright. You know, you are no fun at all." Klarion said, and laced his fingers together in his lap. "Your sister was worried just now. _Very_ worried." Cato blinked.

"_How did you-_"

"Must I _really _answer that?" Klarion cut him off, and Cato shut up.

"Right..."

"So, what seems to be the problem?" Klarion asked. Cato chuckled bitterly.

"Couldn't figure that out?" he asked. Klarion raised a brow.

"Do you know why she was worried?"

"Of course, don't be foolish."

"So what is it, then?"

"The Darla girl is accusing Wren of witchcraft."

"Ah, a regular Abigail Williams, is she?"

"Yes..."

"Hated Abigail ever since I met her. She was so jealous of me. Even so, that's not the problem..." Klarion said. Cato looked up at him.

"Then what is?"

"You are..." Klarion said matter-of-factly. Cato frowned.

"What are you even talking about?"

"Look down, Cato." Klarion said with a smirk. Teekl crept from the dark floor and into his lap. Cato did as he was told, and gasped.

Ice was covering his arms. He could see his breath when he breathed.

"I-I...I didn't even notice..."

"That's the problem. Big sis was freaking out cuz you weren't aware of what was going on. You know you dropped the room temperature by twenty degrees?" Klarion said. Cato shook his head vigorously. He had no idea. He didn't even feel the ice on his arms.

"How'd I do that?" Cato asked. Klarion shrugged, but cracked a smile.

"Whatever you accomplished, it's still going on." he said. "The temperature just dropped a few more degrees." Cato looked over to the stage. The girls were rubbing their arms, and looking around nervously. Wren cast Cato and Klarion wary glances as she folded her own arms to keep warm. She didn't feel the cold, but she had to pretend she did...

"How do I stop?" he said when the girls started glancing suspiciously at Wren.

"Say 'please'." Klarion replied.

"_What_?"

"Just do it." Klarion looked at his nails as he spoke. Cato huffed.

"Please, then!"

"Alrighty." Klarion grinned and snapped his fingers. Cato looked back to the stage. They all still seemed cold.

"You didn't do anything."

"I did, though."

"But it's still cold."

"Of course it is."

"Dammit, father!"

"Calm down, I just gave a reason for it to be cold. If I raised the temperature suddenly, then the kids would be even more suspicious." Klarion said, and leaned back in his seat. "And don't swear." he added. Cato shook his head and looked down. The ice on his arms was gone.

"Excuse me." someone said. Cato turned around to see Maria looking at them both in slight shock.

"M-Maria, uh, what?" Cato asked. He heard Klarion snort next to him. Maria looked from Cato to Klarion.

"The office sent me to check on the auditorium. Someone pulled a prank and stuffed ice in the air ducts to make it freezing. Apparently it worked." she said, and rubbed her arms. "Who is that?" she asked glancing again to Klarion. It took a moment for Cato to remember he was there.

"That-I mean he is my, uh..." Cato looked to Klarion.

And gawked.

Klarion wasn't Klarion. He _was _Klarion, but someone else entirely. His hair was brown and wavy, and he was about Cato's age. He wore an academy uniform, and he winked once at Cato before speaking.

"Name's Damien." he said in a child's voice. It was Klarion's voice, but much, much younger...

He held his hand out to shake Maria's, and she took it.

"Uh, hey man. I'm Maria Fides." she said. Fake Damien smiled.

"'Fides', as in Latin meaning to trust or confide in. Do you keep true to your name, Maria?" Damien asked. Maria blinked, but smiled.

"Wow I didn't know that. As for the question, it depends on the person confiding in me."

"The best answer to give, really." Damien said.

"Yeah, I guess. Well, I need to speak to the instructor. I'll see you around, Cato. Bye Damien." Maria waved and walked to the stage. Cato watched her go.

"Cato and Maria sitting in a tree..." Damien said. Cato's eye twitched and he looked angrily at his not-father.

"I get enough of that from Wren, father."

"Who is this father you speak of?" Damien asked with a grin.

"Shut up and get out of that guise." Cato said. Damien tsked, and changed back to Klarion, but remained at the same age level as Cato. Now Cato stared at a twelve-year-old Klarion, who's feet dangled just above the floor.

"My twelve-year-old father. Every syllable in that sentence is wrong on so many levels." Cato said, and touched his forehead. He felt a headache coming on.

"You should see when I do this to Lenore. It's so funny. This one time we were making out-"

"Shut...up..." Cato said, and held his hand over Klarion's mouth.

"Bud iz funny." Klarion's muffled voice said. Cato shook his head.

"To you and some of your friends perhaps, but please refrain from speaking about your nightly activities with my mother..." he said, and took his hand away.

"Hmph. It wasn't like that at all. Besides, after that prank, there wasn't any 'nightly activities' for weeks-"

"Oh, my god..." Cato gripped his hair in his hands.

"Still, it was worth it. The look on her face was priceless." Klarion added. Cato glued his eyes to the stage, blocking his father's words. Maria was talking to Hilda, and the girls listened to her as well. They all seemed to relax after she explained the situation, and Wren flashed Cato and Klarion a smirk of approval.

"I guess everything was settled, then." Cato murmured.

"Not thanks to you." Klarion said. Cato turned to see he changed back to Damien.

"Why did you-"

"See you tomorrow Cato." Maria's voice said suddenly, and Cato spun around to see she her walk by them.

"Yeah, bye." he called weakly. Damien turned once again to Klarion, and he snickered.

"Smooth move, Casanova."

"Quiet."

"Cato Bleak!" Wren called as she walked briskly over to them. Cato sighed.

"I would like just a few moments where no one talks to me..." he muttered.

"Well, too bad Santa isn't here, so shut up." she said when she was right next to him. She didn't even acknowledge Klarion, which was a first for her. "What was that all about?" she asked. Cato tried to find an answer.

All he could do was shrug.

"I...don't know." he said. Wren looked him up and down.

She smiled a little.

"Ha, you don't know something." she said. Cato raised a brow at her, but kept quiet and returned the smile.

"I guess that's true..." he said. He looked at his hands. "I didn't even notice the ice growing on me. Weird." he said.

"No, not weird. You're just growing, Cato. That's all." Klarion said.

"So, is this going to happen again?" Cato asked, panic rising. Klarion nodded.

"Next time it might be during one of your dull classes, and then everything will be figured out..."

"T-that can't happen." Wren said. She looked serious, and afraid. Klarion waved his hand at her.

"It won't." he said.

"But you said it would-"

"I said it might. Don't put words in my mouth, jeez." Klarion reached over to Cato and pulled his pendant from under his shirt. He eyed the red sphere casually, and dropped it before sighing and ruffling his hair. "If only she hadn't broken that one..."

"Broken it?" Cato turned his pendant to view the small crack in it.

"Yup. Now it's useless, besides the fact that it's an emergency contact. I'll just have to make you one, since you can't tote that snake around. _Bother._.." With that, he changed back to his adult form. "I need to go. I'll see you in a day or two."

"But what about Cato?" Wren asked. "He might do this again-"

"Then keep him home sick until I get back, _jeesh. _Let the issue fall on that damned playboy, he'll understand." he said, and patted Wren on the head before vanishing with Teekl. Wren sighed and cast a small glare at Cato.

"You're such a hassle, bro." she said. Cato smirked at her.

"I've been saying the same thing about you for years..."

...

"You're...sick?"

Bruce looked at Cato from behind his paper, disbelief written on his face. Cato and Wren never got sick. They weren't really able to. Cato nodded his head.

"Yes, sir." he said quietly. "But it's not the type of sick that you're thinking of, um..." his eyes darted to the floor when Bruce refused to stop staring hard at him. Cato hated when he did that...

"His powers are getting stronger and he had a slight hiccup in class today. He needs to stay home until daddy makes him something to help control it." Wren said when he didn't speak again. Cato mentally thanked his sister, and looked back up to Bruce. His expression was stony.

"How long does he need to stay at home?" he asked. Wren shrugged.

"Dunno. Maybe a day or two. He should stay in his room incase something worse than frost happens, you know?" she said. Bruce nodded.

"Alright." Bruce set down the paper and sighed. "Are you feeling alright, Cato?" he asked. Cato nodded.

"Yes, sir. I feel fine."

"That's good. Wren, you should stay home as well. If something happens, then you'd be the only one who could do anything about it." he said. Wren grinned.

"_Cool_! No school for me!" she hugged Cato. "Thanks for breaking, bro!"

"Erm...no problem..."


	8. Smut

'That bad, huh?'

"You have no idea, mother..." Cato sat tiredly on his bed with the phone to his ear. It was his first day staying home, and he had already had enough with Wren bugging him. "I just now got some space from her, since she's helping Alfred with something."

'Your sister shouldn't be helping Alfred; she'll only end up making a big mess for him to clean up.'

"Normally I would care, but at this moment I'm too busy appreciating the sound of silence."

'Oh! 'The Sound of Silence' is my favorite Simon and Garfunkel song!' Lenore said cheerfully into the phone. Cato smiled and shook his head.

"Mother, no. I mean the literal sound of silence."

'Oh, okay. Yeah, I can understand that. At least you down have Harley hounding you twenty-four seve-'

'I heard that, Lenore!' a Jersey accent interrupted.

'I figured you would, Harls. Anyway, Cato, I know it sucks for your nerdy self to be cooped up in the house on a school day, but just bear with it for now. I went through the same situation as you are, only I had the joys of figuring out everything by myself...'

"Didn't father explain things to you?"

'Don't make me laugh. For me, the whole changing to a witch thing was just one big happy surprise after another.'

"That sounds about right. I don't know how you tolerated him."

'Neither do I. Sometimes I just blame it on him using a freaking love charm on me or something...what? Oh, alright. Cato, I need to go now. My time's up. Talk to you later, kiddo.'

"Bye." Cato pressed end on the phone and rested it on the bed. Archimedes slithered over to him, her tongue darting out in curiosity.

'What is it, Cato?'

"Nothing, I just feel a little down after conversations with my mother."

'Reasonable.'

"I hope father is working on whatever I need. I can't stand stay in here for much longer..."

'Then simply leave the room.'

"Not that simple. I don't want something bad happening while I'm around any of them." he said. Archimedes rested her small head on his chest.

'Then take a nap. I enjoy naps very much.' she said. Cato snorted in amusement.

"Yeah, maybe-"

"Little brooootherrrrr!" Wren's voice smacked him in the face, and he groaned. She slammed open his door and walked into his room, som papers in her hand.

"What is it, Wren?" he asked, keeping his glare on the ceiling. She grinned at him and dropped the papers on his face. He sighed, and sat up to look at them. "What are these?"

"Smut!" she said cheerily. His eyes widened at her.

"What?"

"_Smut_! I started writing it! Tell me whatcha think!" she said, and plopped down on his bed. Cato's eyes slowly lowered to the words on the papers in his hand. He read a few lines, his eyes bulging a little more as he went.

"This...Wren, you idiot!" he tore his sight from the papers when he couldn't take anymore and glared narrow-eyed at his sister. He was angry. "How could you do something so stupid as this! It's disgusting! It's gutter trash!"

"It's on fire."

"It's-wait, what?" he asked. Wren pointed to the papers he held, and he looked back to them. They were indeed in flames. He reflexively dropped them, and Wren snapped her fingers before the flames his the blanket. The papers vanished, and all that remained was a few ashes. Cato huffed, and looked back to his sister. "What did you write that for?" he asked. She smiled and looked over to the doorway.

"Izzat good enough, Teekl?" she asked. Cato turned and saw the orange longhair looking with her topaz eyes in interest back at him. She nodded, and ran off out of sight.

"Why is she here? Is father here?" Cato asked. Wren shook her head.

"He sent Teekl to look at how bad your predicament is before he finished his little project. He wanted me to make you mad, so he suggested, and I quote, to 'Piss him the fuck off.' And I did." she said cheerily. Cato bared his teeth.

"I'm going to murder you both in your sleep..." he muttered. Wren smiled sheepishly and raised her hands reassuredly.

"Calm down, Cato. We just needed to see how bad it was for you. If he makes something that's either too powerful or too weak, it can make your powers all wonky-"

"I hate being tricked, Wren."

"I know, I know. Lighten up, though. I thought it was funny." she said.

"You find everything to be funny."

"So what, I have a sense of humor. 'Scuse me for living."

"You are most definitely _not _excused." he said. Wren pouted at this, and pointed to Archimedes, who looked to be observing in mild interest.

"Aw, c'mon. Archie thought it was funny!" she said. Cato's eye twitched. He despised when Archimedes was regarded as 'Archie'.

"Her name is _Archimedes_." he mumbled.

"That's a mouthful. Archie is_ waaaay _cuter, any...way..." Wren faltered when she saw Cato's dangerous glare from under his bangs. She chuckled nervously, and held her arms out. "Aw, I'm sorry for making you mad. I'll stop if you gimme a hug." se said. Cato eyed her for a moment, before heaving a long sigh and leaning forward to hug his sister.

Before he could react, she grabbed his head...

And smashed his face into her breasts, her arms wrapped around his head so he couldn't escape.

"Mph! Wmph!" Cato grabbed her shoulders and tried to push himself away. Wren laughed at the feeble attempt.

"That's watcha get for giving me the Grampa Scary look!" she said, and let him go. Before he could swipe at her, she bounced happily to the doorway and out of sight. Cato breathed in air heavily, thankful for the sudden oxygen.

"I-I'll kill her...for that..." he breathed, his hands balled into fists, and his face bright red.

'That was humorous.' Archimedes said in amusement. Cato shot the snake a look.

"What was that?"

'Nothing, nothing...'

...

"You!"

Cato jumped from his bed and grabbed his bewildered father by the collar before slamming him against the wall. It was the next day, and the few nerves Cato had left were withering away.

"_Yes_?" Klarion asked in agitation. Cato tightened his grip.

"_What the hell took you so long_? I can't leave my room, and I'm being driven insane by a mad teen-aged girl!" he said loudly.

"So you've been having fun." Klarion said with a smirked, and shrugged Cato off of him. He adjusted his tie before taking something from his pocket and handing it to Cato. It was a silver ring with a round garnet in the center. Cato blinked, and looked up to Klarion.

"What is this?" he asked. Klarion sighed.

"It's what you've been sitting in your room for two days in wait for. Put it on, and don't ever take it off without my permission." he said. Cato nodded, and slid the ring on his right ring finger.

"I don't feel any different." he said after a moment of silence.

"What, were you expecting some big explosion, or light to shine from your toenails? It's just restricting your abilities to a degree." Klarion said, "And you're welcome."

"Oh, yes, thank you." Cato said. The door to his room opened, and Wren walked in.

"Hi, daddy. Oh, cute ring, Cato! Izzat what you made, daddy, huh?" she asked, and picked up Cato's hand to inspect it. "Pretty." she said, then frowned. "But this means we gotta go to school tomorrow."

"You could just lie to Wayne and stay home..." Klarion suggested.

"No!" Cato yelled. "No..._way._ We are going to school tomorrow, and I am going to get away from _her_!" he said, jutting his thumb at Wren, who put on a look of innocence.

"Aw, Cato. You don't like spending time with me?" She asked sweetly.

"You smothered me with your breasts! _Twice_!"

"So?"

"_So?_ What do you mean _so_! It's barbaric!"

"Oh, Cato..." Klarion said, checking his nails. "Is that any way to speak to your sister? She was only showing affection-"

"_Affection? _The appropriate word is _incest_!" Cato said. Klarion shrugged.

"In Limbo, it's not uncommon for siblings like yourselves to become intimate with each other." he said. Cato gawked at those words.

"Wh-wha-"

"I don't blame you for your thought process, though." Klarion cut him off. "You grew up on Earth, not Limbo. Things are different here by eons. Personally I think this plain has _way_ too many restrictions-"

"With good reason!" Cato said, and gripped his hair. "I don't want my thirteen-year-old sister putting the moves on me!"

*cough*

The sudden noise caused the three to look to the doorway, where Alfred looked perplexedly at Cato, who smack his now reddened face in embarrassment. Just how much of that fun conversation had the old butler heard?

"Er.." Alfred began, "Though I hate to interrupt.._.whatever_ it is you're doing, I'll need to ask Mr. Bleak to please join Master Wayne in his study." he said, and walked briskly out of sight.

"I wonder what Uncle Bruce has to say to you..." Wren muttered. Klarion sniggered.

"Probably wants to complain about how badly my outfit clashes with the house decor..." he said, and waved to the two children before strolling out of the room, Teekl appearing at his heels.

...

Bruce faced Klarion from behind his desk. Klarion sat boredly down in the chair in front of it, and Teekl jumped onto his lap. Her tail twitched left to right as Klarion and Bruce's eyes met, each glower holding it's own amount of hatred.

"You called?" Klarion spoke first. Bruce laced his fingers together on the desk.

"What happened to Lenore won't happen to Cato, correct?" he asked. Klarion raised a brow.

"Whatever do you mean, old timer?" he asked.

"You call me old, but you seem to be looking a bit older yourself..." Bruce muttered. Klarion instantly shifted to a twelve-year-old him, and batted his eyes.

"You were saying?" he asked. Bruce's eyes narrowed.

"As I was saying..." he began. "Lenore went though a very similar situation as Cato is currently going through. I need to know if this is going to jeopardize his health in the future."

"Lenore's health was never jeopardized."

"My having to pick her unconscious body up from the middle of the road all those years ago begs to differ." Bruce said. Klarion's eyes flashed red, but he smiled.

"For such an old man, you've got some good memory..."

"You call _me _old? I'm in my mid forties. Tell me, how old are _you _exactly?" Bruce asked.

"We were talking about Cato." Klarion said, and it was Bruce's turn to smile.

"Of course. Am I going to expect anything that happened with Lenore to happen to Cato? As you know, her 'change' was not only physically taxing at points, but it's also had some mental consequences as well. I need to know if there is even a slight possibility that he will go through the same ordeal. I don't need to worry much about Wren, she has enough control over it, but Cato worries me." he said. Klarion stared hard at him for many silent moments before answering.

"What are you so interested in that kind of information for anyway? It's not like you can do anything..." he said. Bruce's jaw tightened.

"I just want to be a little more prepared this time around. Remember that I'm the one taking care of them while you roam around, wreaking havoc everywhere you go."

"It's chaos, not havoc, and if I could take them, I would." he said.

"Right."

"I could make you claw your own eyes out right now, and yet you sit here, openly mocking me."

"If you were going to kill me, you already would have. I know you won't because that'll only prove to be a hassle for you in the long run. Anyway, I just need an answer on this, and our conversation will be over and you can run along." Bruce said. The child that was Klarion glared at Bruce, and Teel mewed threateningly at him.

"Cato does have a chance of going through what Lenore went through, but it's highly unlikely." he said.

"What can I expect in the future?"

"He'll occasionally need to be kept from school to rest. He may be able to control it now, but he'll still wear out easily."

"Got it."

"Anymore dull questions?"

"For now, no. But we'll be meeting again."

"I suspected-"

"One more thing."

"What?"

"How powerful will Cato become in the long run? Compared to Wren, even I can see that he's a late bloomer. Will it remain like that?"

"Right now he's working with baby magic, but I can't tell what he'll accomplish later on. Who knows, maybe he'll become a bad-ass and take chaos to a whole new level. It's happened before with Witch-Persons. I don't know if that's the case with him, though. I'm not a diviner." Bruce nodded slowly as the words sunk in.

"Alright, you can leave now."

"With pleasure."

The Witch Boy vanished from Bruce's sight, and he leaned back in his seat, stony faced. He remembered Klarion's words.

"To 'take chaos to a whole new level'...that's not what I wanted to hear..."


	9. Council

"I call this meeting to order." Batman said quietly. He watched as the members of the Justice League quieted down, and looked to him. They were at the Watchtower, their headquarters located in space that revolved around the Earth much like a satellite. They all sat around a large rectangular table, Superman seated at the head and looking a little disgruntled at the world's greatest detective.

"What is our reason for being here, Batman?" he asked. As a response, Batman typed something into a small computer in front of him. After that, the image of two children appeared on a screen in the table's center. Some murmurs of confusion sounded, and he held his hand up to silence them.

"These two are our reason. Wren Crane and Cato Crane." He said. Superman's eyes narrowed at the image. A caped man wearing a golden helmet that covered his entire head besides his eyes leaned forward in obvious interest. The Flash took on a look of confusion.

"Wait, what? I don't know these kids." he said to Batman, who nodded.

"These children's identities were only disclosed to a select few in the League. Superman, Wonder Woman, Myself, Martian Manhunter, and Zatana are the only ones who knew about their existence initially." he said.

"Why the secrecy?" Green Lantern asked from his chair. Batman typed something else into his computer, and a familiar image popped up next to the image of Wren and Cato. Collective murmurs again.

"Wicked?" Flash asked.

"They are her children." Zatana said, and the members looked to her. "You all know that Lenore Crane is a majicker, and is often aiding the Witch Boy, Klarion in his chaotic schemes. She's also helped her father, Jonathan Crane, a.k.a. The Scarecrow, in his experiments on fear." The images of Klarion and Jonathan appeared.

"Again, why the secrecy?" Green Lantern asked.

"Since they were only children, we didn't want too many knowing about them and creating unnecessary worry. We especially didn't want," Zatana looked to the man in the golden helmet, "Dr. Fate to know about them, so I took the liberty of placing a concealment charm on them to keep him from finding them." Dr. Fate nodded once, now even more interested.

"Why hide them from myself?" he asked.

"We're getting to that." Batman said. "A short while after their birth, these children were taken in by Bruce Wayne to keep a close surveillance on them. It hasn't been easy at all, with Lenore Crane appearing at a moment's notice to take them for short periods. Whenever they would return, their mouths were sealed when it came to talking about what they did with their mother. And, she wasn't the only one who would bring them on these outings."

"Who would? Their grandfather?" Flash asked. Batman shook his head.

"No, though I do believe they have visited Scarecrow on occasion."

"Who, then?"

"Klarion the Witch Boy." Batman said, and an image of a young Witch Boy appeared next to Lenore's. Fate leaned back in his seat.

"What business does this pandemonious child have with _these_ children?" he asked darkly.

"Again, we all know that Lenore Crane possesses techno-sorcery. These children inherited those exact abilities." Batman said. "I suspect that Klarion is training them."

"_What?_" Fate's eyes widened at this.

"So...they're dangerous." Flash said.

"Their powers, maybe, but besides stealing candy, they haven't shown any signs of violence. They're good kids. For now at least, they're harmless."

"Then why bring them up in the first place?" Superman asked.

"Because they're becoming stronger. Cato Crane has just gone through a type of growth spurt with his abilities. He caused an entire auditorium to drop quickly in temperature without even realizing it."

"So are you saying that though he might not mean any harm, he's still capable of accidentally inflicting damage?" Wonder Woman asked.

"I'm afraid that that might be the case soon enough when he becomes stronger. Luckily, Klarion was able to provide him with an item that will help the child control his abilities."

"So, it's fine then." Captain Marvel said.

"Any situation that involves a Lord of Chaos, especially Klarion, is not 'fine'. This is bad." Fate said. He tapped the table repeatedly with his gloved finger. "I cannot believe you kept such information from me."

"Why don't we take these children into custody then?" Green Arrow asked. "They are obviously dangerous, even if they don't mean to be. And if their attitudes are as you say they are, then perhaps they will come along willingly." Batman shook his head at this.

"Even if they were willing to come along, we still need to remember their mother. Lenore Crane will not give her children up without without a fight, and trust me, in a fight like that, someone _will_ die." He said.

"Perhaps we could subdue her a well." Red Tornado said. "We have both Dr. Fate and Zatana on our side. Surely she isn't powerful enough to take both of these majickers."

"Don't underestimate Wicked. She could take most of us down before finally being subdued." Zatana said. "Remember that she shares Klarion's soul. Just that makes her a threat alone."

"And even if we did capture her, we would only trigger a chaotic storm that we know Klarion is more than capable of creating." Batman said.

"That brat has never shown any caring toward anything but that cat of his. Why would he care if they were taken in? It doesn't make any sense." Flash said. Fate nodded at this.

"Yes, I also find this to be quite puzzling." he said.

"I want you all to look closely at these images." Batman said. The image of Lenore disappeared, and Klarion's image was placed directly next to the children's image. With the image being of his child form, he was only about as tall as they were. "I want you to note any similarities between them, especially Klarion and Wren, the girl."

"Alright," Captain Marvel said, "they're both creepy looking, but I'm still lost."

"Batman, what are you trying to say about this?" Green Arrow asked.

"This." Batman pressed a button on his computer, and the image of the child Klarion shifted to an image of Klarion as an adult. Murmurs of surprise sounded.

"Are you saying..." Flash stopped himself, his eyes wide. Batman nodded.

"We've only ever seen Klarion as more of a child, but he has the ability to shift his age and even his appearance. Cato and Wren Crane are really Cato and Wren Bleak, and Klarion Bleak is their father."

"_WHAT_?!" Fate banged his hands against the table and stood, fury in his eyes. White shocks of lightning rippled over his body. The rest of the room went silent. "He has _bred_?!"

"Yes," Zatana said. "Fate, calm do-"

"Have you any idea the seriousness of this situation! Do not instruct me to calm down!" He interrupted. Batman sighed.

"This is why you in particular were not informed about this. We knew you would only see them as a threat-"

"With plenty reason!"

"Why are you telling us about this, Batman, if you want them to remain safe from Fate?" Red Tornado asked.

"Like I said before, these two are becoming stronger as days pass. Cato Bleak's powers are considered weak compared to Wren's, but the episode he had the other day showed that he may well be catching up. Bruce Wayne spoke with Klarion, and I asked him if Cato would remain weak. His response was...disturbing."

"What was it?" Fate asked. He was once again seated, but he was tense.

"He said he didn't know if it was the case for Cato, but there was a possibility that he could become much, much stronger, and bring chaos to an entirely new level."

"That is possible." Zatana said. "There have been majickers that were incredibly weak at first, but then were suddenly endowed with an incredible amount of power. At least that's what my father told me."

"Right. If that becomes the case, I'll need aid in controlling the situation. This is why I'm informing Dr. Fate now instead of later. Zatana won't be enough."

"These children's existence is incredibly dangerous to the world order." Fate said. "As a Lord of Order, it is my duty to eliminate such potential threats before they become uncontainable. These children must die-"

_BAM_

Everyone looked to Zatana, who had hit the table. Yellow energy surrounded her fist like fire, and her eyes glowed.

"If you go near those children with an intention to kill, then it won't be only Lenore and Klarion you'll need to worry about..."

"You would kill your own father to save such whelps?" Fate asked, his eyes narrowed.

"You aren't my father! You're a damned helmet that my father put on to save me from!"

"Calm down, now!" Superman stood, and stared hard at the two. The light vanished from Zatana's hand and eyes, and she looked grudgingly to Superman.

"Killing these children for the sake of order would only begin a full scale war between Klarion and us. We don't want that at all. The best thing to do for now is observe." Batman said. "All I'm asking of Fate and Zatana is to be ready should I need to call for them. Being mortal, I'll be unable to see the signs of them changing directly, making me useless. I'll keep you informed of their progress at all times." Zatana nodded at this.

"Alright, I'll do what I can should you need me." she said.

"How old are these children?" Fate asked.

"Thirteen years old."

"A very unlucky number." Fate said, and shook his head.

"All the same, we need to know if you'll agree to do this." Batman said. Fate was quiet for long moments before finally nodding.

"I will do it. But know well that I will also be keeping my eye on them. If I see any sign of them joining in their father's quest for global chaos, then I will not hesitate to take action. I may not be able to contain Klarion, but two small children will be more than simple."

"I don't entirely agree with that." Batman said. "Not that I could stop you if I tried."

"I could stop you..." Zatana murmured.

"Keep in mind Zatana that these children _are _a dangerous threat." Fate said. "Who knows what things that even now they are capable of?"

"Could we at least see these kids and figure out just how they are before passing any judgment on them?" Flash asked.

"I can't bring them here, but Wayne Manor is equipped with multiple security cameras. They should be home from school." Batman said, and pressed something on his computer. The images vanished, replaced by a large screen. The members leaned forward to get a good look at the twins.

...

"Hey! You took out my battleship!" Cato cried out angrily. Wren smirked at her brother.

"That's the point of the game 'Battleship', bro." she said. Cato angrily turned his battleship table around to show Wren. It was after school, and they had each finished their homework. Cato was satisfied with the amount of time he was able to spend away from his sister, so he didn't feel so bad being exposed to her absurdity.

"The point is to sink the battleship with these plastic turrets! Not to melt the ship with your powers!" he said, and pointed to the little grey glob that used to be one of his pieces.

"So? I made it more interesting." she sniffed.

"It's cheating, you ridiculous person!"

"'Cheating' is such a harsh word. I like to think of it as 'bending the rules in my favor'."

"It's the same damn thing!"

"You've started to say curse words a lot lately." Wren said. Cato sighed and turned his table back to face him and he rearranged the pieces.

"So, what if I curse? They're just words created by human beings to bring more emphasis to what they are saying. I don't know how that is a bad thing to express your thoughts."

"Hmm." Wren brought her finger to her chin in thought. "Maybe I should bring that point up with Uncle Bruce. He might let us curse then, haha."

"Highly unlikely." Cato said. Just then, another of his pieces melted. He glared at Wren. "What was that for!"

"Dunno. It's funny." she giggled.

"Really?" he said, and focused on her own battleship table. Wren's smug face dropped when all of her pieces melted into grey goo. She scowled, and Cato smirked. "I guess it's enjoyable after all." he said.

"I'll show you, you jerk." Wren muttered, and Cato's entire table began to melt into a blue puddle of plastic. Cato then caused Wren's table to crumble to ashes before her eyes. "No fair." Wren said, and she made the ashes create a small tornado. She sent it after Cato, who ducked under the table. He focused on the chair she was sitting in and the legs began to buck like a horse, eventually knocking her to the floor.

"Take that, sister..." he muttered. Wren sat up and huffed.

"I'll show you, brother..." she said, and smiled as her eyes flashed a mischievous red.

...

"Well that was intense." Flash said. The members were now watching as Cato and Wren sat on the living room floor, worn from fighting. All around them the furniture was broken, and torn.

"Ultimate sibling battle..." Captain Marvel said.

"Only shows how barbaric those two are..." Fate said angrily. "They were throwing everything they could at each other, completely disregarding what was around them. Chaotic. That's all they-"

'You okay, Cato?' Wren voice interrupted him, and the league returned their attentions to the screen. They watched Wren crawl over to her brother, who was lying on the floor, staring up at the ceiling, his chest heaving.

'Yes. My lip is swollen, but no matter. Are you alright?' Cato asked.

'I'm fine.'

'Good.'

'Next time we should play something else. Like Candy Land...'

'Doesn't matter. We'll only end up fighting no matter what we play.'

'Why is that, I wonder?'

'We both want desperately to win. That's why. It's human nature.'

'Yeah, but are we even human?'

'...I never thought about it, honestly...'

'It's kind of scary to think about...'

'Wren...'

'Yeah?'

'Someone is watching us...'

The members froze in there places as Cato sat up and looked around the living room. He finally looked up, and directly at the small camera that was watching them. His eyes turned red as they practically bore into everyone. Batman pressed a button, and the screen vanished. Sighs of relief.

"That...was creepy." Green Lantern mumbled. Some murmurs of agreement sounded.

...

"What are we doing up here, father?" Cato asked later that night. Archimedes was wrapped around him. His lip was healed, but he kept biting at it as he looked over the ledge to the street far below. They were at the top of the Wayne Enterprises building, and Wren was skipping along the rail of the ledge without a care. Klarion was sitting on the rail, Teekl on his left.

"I like it up here. Shut up and be happy about the time we're spending together." He said.

"I don't think that's the reason..." Cato muttered. Klarion's eyes fell on Cato as he sat down on the cool cement.

"You're right." He said. "Truth is, I wanted to test something."

"Test what?"

"You said you felt you were being watched earlier, right?"

"Right."

"And that odd feeling just vanished like that?" Klarion snapped his fingers, and Cato nodded. "Hmmm."

"I tried to focus on what was watching us, but like I said, it vanished before I could do anything."

"Well, at least we know your powers are getting better..."

"What are you planning on doing?" Cato asked. Klarion smiled wide at him.

"Come sit next to me and I'll tell you." He said. Cato eyes his father suspiciously before getting up and hopping onto the railing. When he was seated, Klarion continued. "Have you ever heard of a fellow by the name of Dr. Fate?"

"No."

"Well, he sucks. That's the important thing. Anyway, I think it might have been him that snuck his geezer eye on you guys earlier."

"Are you two enemies?"

"Like fire and freakin' ice. He's a Lord of Order, while I'm a God of Chaos. We've been clashing for years..." Klarion said.

"Why would he be watching us?"

"He's probably figured out I have my own precious little brood. It was only a matter of time. I'd give a dozen souls to see that old helmet's reaction to that cheery bit of news." Klarion chuckled darkly, and Teekl rolled her topaz eyes. Cato glanced over to Wren, who was attempting to float in the air, with her familiar Back watching from the ground.

"Would he have reason to harm us?" he asked. Klarion scoffed.

"Lots of reasons. Being a Lord of Order, he hates us, we chaotic sort. He's just jealous that he can't have as much fun..."

"You said earlier that he was an old helmet. What does that mean?"

"Oh, yeah. Like I'm attached to this dimension through Teekl, Fate is attached to this place through that helmet. If someone doesn't wear it, he can't do anything, because he'll have no host. He needs a host to come here. I don't know where he is when he's not here, but I suspect it's somewhere in Limbo."

"So, he possesses them?"

"In a sense, yes."

"Why would people do that willingly?"

"Dunno. His current host sacrificed his body to Fate to save his brat daughter from him. Now Fate never takes off the helmet, and that dumb geezer he possesses is trapped in his own head."

"So, if it is Fate that's watching us, are we in danger?" Cato asked as Wren lost her balance and fell to the ground, a grin of embarrassment written on her flushed face. Back scurried over to her and sat on her knee, his nose twitching with worry.

"Well, I'm not. You two are, and maybe Lenore." Klarion said. Cato's jaw tightened. Even his mom was potentially in danger. How powerful was this Dr. Fate?

"What can we do about him?" he asked. He sounded nervous, and Archimedes hugged him a little tighter in reassurance.

"Well if it is him, all I can try to do is lure him out of where he's hiding..."

"What is it you're going to do?"

"This."

Cato felt something push him hard from behind, and he toppled over the rail.

From above him, Wren cried out, and Klarion laughed.

...

**Author's Note: Hellooooo, lovelies! Hope you guys liked the chapter. Thank you so much for the reviews! Stay tuned! Luv ya's! :D**


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